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IAF set to retire last of its MiG-21s in Sept
The Indian Air Force will decommission its last MiG-21 jets on September 19, ending a 62-year era, amid safety concerns and a transition to LCA Mk-1A fighters.
The Indian Air Force is set to phase out the last of its iconic Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 fighter jets in two months, ending a journey of 62 years, officials aware of the matter said on Tuesday.
The fighter jets will be decommissioned at a ceremony planned in Chandigarh on September 19, the officials said, asking not to be named. The air force currently has two MiG-21 squadrons , the No 23 Squadron, better known as “Panthers”, and the No 3 Squadron or “Cobras.” Both are based at the sprawling Nal desert fighter base near Bikaner.
The induction of the MiG-21, India’s first supersonic fighter, began in 1963. IAF has operated a raft of MiG-21 variants over the last six decades : Type 74 or MiG 21F, Type 76 or MiG 21PF, Type 77 or MiG 21FL, Type 96 or MiG 21M, Type 75 or MiG 21 Bis (upgraded Type 96) and the MiG-21 Bison.
Both squadrons operate the MiG-21 Bison, the last variant of the single-engine workhorse. A fighter squadron usually consists of 16 to 18 fighter jets.
The MiG-21’s 62-year history in IAF has been punctuated by accidents that put the Soviet-origin aircraft’s safety record under running scrutiny and led to an understandable chorus of concern and calls for its replacement. With upgrades, IAF managed to keep them flying for so long.
More than 400 MiG-21s have been involved in accidents that have killed around 200 pilots, earning the fighter jets unfortunate epithets such as “Flying Coffin” and “Widow Maker”. To be sure, more MiG-21s have crashed than any other fighter because they formed the bulk of the aircraft in IAF for the longest time.
In the 1980s and 1990s, these planes accounted for more than 60% of the air force’s fighting strength. The maiden batch of six MiG-21Fs entered service in March-April 1963 and IAF progressively inducted 874 MiG-21s.
The MiG-21s are being replaced with locally made light combat aircraft (LCA Mk-1A).
IAF is concerned about the current pace of the LCA Mk-1A programme because of the possible risks a delay in the induction of new fighters could pose to its combat effectiveness. The air force ordered 83 Mk-1A fighters for ₹48,000 crore in February 2021 and plans to buy 97 more Mk-1As at a cost of around ₹67,000 crore.
The first of the 83 jets on order was to be delivered to the IAF by March 31, 2024. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is now expected to hand over the first aircraft to the IAF within a month. It hopes to deliver all the 83 fighters by 2028-29. The air force currently has around 30 fighter squadrons compared to an authorised 42.5.
