Air Raid to Al-Waleed (2)

The Story of Demolishing Fighters and the Equipment in Al-Waleed Triple Military Bases ‎Known as H-3‎

2016-1-4

Air Raid to Al-Waleed (H-3)‎
The Story of Demolishing Fighters and the Equipment in Al-Waleed Triple Military Bases ‎Known as H-3‎

By: Brigadier General Ahmad Mehrnia
Tehran, Sooreh Mehr Publications Company
‎2010 (Persian Version)‎
Translated by: Zahra Hosseinian

Second Brigadier General, retired pilot Farajollah Baratpour, who led the flight group in the main H-3 operation.

Leader of the flight group foreword

History has always been a teacher of men and the nation who don’t learn from history or forget it, are doomed to repeat their mistakes and bitter experience of the past few days. Pages of history has always been as a mirror for posterity in which they look and find out their background and being familiar with the brightness and darkness of the past generations, as if they find their way; but as some who can’t tolerate the limpid of mirror and consider its breaking as the only way of hiding their evil, the real pages of history has been always in the danger of becoming tore apart and turning from what it has been actually to what it is now pleasant.

Numbers of men and women have could make the history, but how much their work is great, its joining to the valuable book of history and turning to the historical one requires only a lofty magnanimity and courage. Magnanimity requires deliberation in the past and seeking truth and courage which is necessary for speaking and writing the truth and honesty.

What has been done in this book is the result of perseverance and courage of my dear brother, Ahmad Mehrnia who has used his natural talent in this way. I cite to the defense of his strategic management doctoral dissertation, as a claim of his high ambition and talent; and sacrifices during the war as one of the most active pilots and fighter with F-5 fighter-bomber aircraft, as signs of his courage.

The book is about the operation that I have had the honor of leading it with the contributions of dears who fortunately have been remembered. However the words are powerless to express their dedication and sacrifice.

Al-Waleed operation, known as H-3, causes a lot of changes in the war in its time. West and East said and write about it, but in our country, a compassionate man with high-mindedness and courage, like the writer of this book who adds another page to the history, was absent. In the past, although, a movie called H-3 was made and released on screen with the efforts and attention of martyr commander of IRIAF, Amir Major General Mansour Sattari and different books and texts were published in magazines and other media, as well as investigation of some narratives in scientific societies; but the truth has been depicted in this book in a way it has happened and was worthy of such a major operation.

Since I have closely followed the development of the book, I see that the writer interviewed with the most of those involved in the operation and explored their documents, so that the most accurate narrative will be recorded in history. Even in addition to the pilots who participated in the raid to Al-Waleed bases, often those who are somehow involved in the operation have been also interviewed. In some cases, the families of those who have died a martyr or died during the years of war have also been contacted. Therefore, his work has brought many hardships for his honor family, in addition to invest more than a year and lots of costs. So it is my duty to appreciate these loved ones and from God want increasing successes and well-being and wealth for all great people who had tried to keep alive the human values in our dear country and written historical facts, by ignoring worldly life and material. I hope they leave behind a valuable relic for posterity.

Second Brigadier General Pilot,

Farajollah Baratpour