Arteshbod A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED Online ...

Mohammad Amir Khatami () (1920 – 12 September 1975), CVO, was the commander of the

Imperial Iranian Air Force The history of the Iranian Air Force, currently known as the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, can be divided into two phases—before the Islamic Revolution, and after it. Imperial era The Imperial Iranian Air Force (IIAF) was a branch ...

, advisor to

Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the Iranian Revolution, which ...

and the second husband of

Fatemeh Pahlavi Fatemeh Pahlavi (; 30 October 1928 – 27 May 1987) was an Iranian princess of the Pahlavi dynasty. She was the tenth child of Reza Shah and the half-sister of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Born in Tehran, she left Pahlavi Iran, Iran prior to the Ir ...

, half-sister of the Shah.

Early life and education

Khatami was born in

Rasht Rasht (; ) is a city in the Central District (Rasht County), Central District of Rasht County, Gilan province, Gilan province, Iran, serving as the capital of the province, the county, and the district. The city is also known as the "City of ...

in 1920. His father was a tea house owner and later dealt with real estate. His mother was a relative of Imam Jomeh, a significant religious figure in Tehran and a relative of Nasr ed Din Shah. After graduating from the

Alborz High School Alborz High School () is a college-preparatory gifted high school located in the heart of Tehran, Iran. It is one of the first modern high schools in Asia and the Middle East, named after the Alborz mountain range, north of Tehran. Its place in th ...

in Tehran, Khatami attended the military high school. In 1939, he began to study at the air force branch of the military college and graduated as a second lieutenant. Next he took pilot training courses in the United Kingdom and graduated from the

Royal Air Force College Cranwell The Royal Air Force College (RAFC) is the Royal Air Force academy which provides initial training to all RAF personnel who are preparing to become commissioned officers. The College also provides initial training to aircrew cadets and is resp ...

. He was also trained at

Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base ( German: "Fliegerhorst Fürstenfeldbruck" or "Flugplatz Fürstenfeldbruck") is a former German Air Force airfield near the town of Fürstenfeldbruck in Bavaria, near Munich, Germany. Fürstenfeldbruck became famous fir ...

, Germany, in the 1950s on jets as part of a group of 15 IIAF pilots including Capt. (later Lt. General)

Nader Jahanbani Sepahbod Nader Mirza Jahanbani (; 16 April 1928 – 13 March 1979) was an Iranian prince, general, distinguished fighter pilot of Imperial Iranian Air Force (IIAF) and the deputy chief of the IIAF under Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, the last Shah ...

, Lt. (later Lt. General) Amir Hossein Rabii, Lt. (later Lt. General) Mohammad H. Mehrmand, and Lt. (later Major General) A. Minusepehr.

Career

In 1946, Khatami was named personal pilot of the Shah. Days before the coup on 16 August 1953, the Shah, accompanied by his second wife Sorayya Esfandiary Bakhtiari and Aboul Fath Atabay, escaped from Iran to Iraq and then to Italy by a plane flown by Khatami. Khatami was also one of the military advisers of the Shah. Later Khatami became a four-star general. In 1957 he was appointed chief of staff of the Imperial Air Force. He succeeded Hedayat Gilanshah in the post. Khatami served in this post until his death in 1975. During Khatami's long tenure, the Imperial Iranian Air Force was modeled on the

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...

and became Iran’s main striking arm. Its transport and tactical airlift capabilities were significantly expanded between 1965 and 1968. Khatami's successor was Fazael Tadayon who was appointed to the post on 14 September 1975. In addition, Khatami served as the chairman of the board of the Iranian National Airlines and chief of the council of the Civil Aviation Department. He also had some business activities. He was co-owner of a construction company and had shares in the aviation and real estate companies.

Personal life

Khatami married twice. His first spouse was his cousin with whom he had a daughter. She was killed in an accident in 1954. Then Khatami married Princess Fatemeh Pahlavi on 22 November 1959, half-sister of the Shah. The Shah and his fiancée

Farah Diba Farah Pahlavi (; []; born 14 October 1938) is the former Queen and last Empress () of Pahlavi Iran and is the third wife and widow of the last List of monarchs of Iran, Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. She was born into a prosperous Ira ...

attended the wedding ceremony. They had two sons, Kambiz (born 1961) and Ramin (born 1967), and a daughter, Pari (born 1962). In 1947 Khatami was the captain of the

Iranian national football team The Iran national football team (), recognised as IR Iran by FIFA since 2018, represents Iran in men's international senior Association football, football and is governed by the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI). At the cont ...

. A declassified

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...

report argues that Khatami was close to Hossein Fardoust and Taqi Alavikia, and that they were part of a dowreh, or social-political circle of associates. The dowreh, along with familial relations, was a significant element in the political functioning of Iran in the

Pahlavi era The Imperial State of Iran, officially known as the Imperial State of Persia until 1935, and commonly referred to as Pahlavi Iran, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Pahlavi dynasty. The Pahlavi dynasty was created in 1925 and lasted ...

. The Americans regarded Khatami as a pro-American official who might assume the role of successor to the Shah. At the time of his death, Khatami's wealth was estimated to be nearly $100 million.

Death

Khatami died in a

hang gliding Hang gliding is an air sports, air sport or recreational activity in which a pilot flies a light, non-motorised, fixed-wing aircraft, fixed-wing heavier-than-air aircraft called a hang glider. Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminium al ...

accident on 12 September 1975 in

Dezful Dezful (; pronounced ) is a city in the Central District of Dezful County, Khuzestan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History Dezful is one of the oldest cities in the Khuzestan province. According to ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Khatami, Mohammad Amir 20th-century Iranian businesspeople 1920 births 1975 deaths Men's association football players not categorized by position Commanders of Imperial Iranian Air Force Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Golden Crown Graduates of the Royal Air Force College Cranwell Grand Crosses 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Imperial Iranian Armed Forces four-star generals Iranian expatriates in the United Kingdom Iranian men's footballers People from Rasht People of Pahlavi Iran Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Iran Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1975 Burials at Shah Abdol-Azim Shrine