Iran starts mass production of the indigenous Saeqeh-80 fighter jet.

In September 2010, Iran displayed the first squadron of Saeqeh in an air show staged during the military parades at the beginning of the Week of Sacred Defense, marking Iranians' sacrifices during the 8 years of Iraqi imposed war on Iran in 1980s.

In September 2011, the Iranian Air Force's first squadron of home-made Saeqeh fighter jets started operations during the large offensive air drills codenamed "Fadaeeyan-e Harim-e Vellayat III" in Northwestern Iran.

Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Air Force Brigadier General Alireza Barkhor announced in February that the new model of Iran's home-made Saeqeh jet fighter would be unveiled in the future.

"We will fly the new model of Iran's new Saeqeh fighter very soon," Brigadier General Barkhor said.

Also in the same month, Iranian Air Force Commander Brigadier General Hassan Shah Safi announced that his forces had focused all their power and energy on building fighter jets as they believed that future wars were fought and won in the sky.

“It is obvious that future wars will be in the sky with massive air and missile raids; therefore, the Air Force has adopted a new approach and focused all its internal power on building fighter jets in a self-driven, but organized way,” Shah Safi said, addressing foreign states’ military attachés in Iran.

The HESA Saeqeh or Saeqeh-80 (Thunderbolt) is an Iranian single seat, twin engine fighter jet. It is the second generation of the Iranian Azarakhsh fighter and, like the first generation, appears to be based on the United States F-5E. The Saeqeh is a joint product of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force and the Iranian Ministry of Defense. The Saeqeh has the ability to track down enemy aircraft, engage in combat, target locations on the ground, and carry a large range of weapons and ammunition. The first prototype of the jet was shown on state television making a test flight in July 2004.