The MiG-21 jet was first inducted into the Indian Air Force in 1963. It was India’s first supersonic jet i.e. it could fly fast with the speed of voice (332 meters per second).
Fighter Jet’s last 2 squadrons (36 MiG ‑21) are stationed at Nal airbase in Bikaner, Rajasthan. These are known as number 3 squadron cobra and number 23 squadron panthers.
MiG-21 Jet played an important role in the 1965 Indo-Pak War, 1971 Bangladesh Mukti Sangram, 1999 Kargil War and 2019 Balakot Air Strike. Now Tejas will replace the MK1A fighter aircraft.
According to data from the Ministry of Defense, more than 400 MiG-21 aircraft have crashed. More than 200 pilots have been killed in it. For this reason, the fighter plane is called ‘flying coffin’ and ‘Widow maker’.
India bought 900 MiG-21 jets, now only 36 left
India bought 900 MiG-21 fighter jets. Of these, 660 Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) made it in the country itself. According to reports, only 36 MiG-21 fighter jets are left in the Indian Air Force fleet. It provided excellent service for several decades.
Wing Commander Abhinandan’s Mig Crash was done in Balakot Air Strike
In February 2019, 40 soldiers of India were martyred in the Pulwama attack. 2 weeks later, on 26 February, the Air Force did an air strike from MiG Jets at the Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist camp in Balakot.
After this, Pakistan tried to target Indian military bases on 27 February. In this aerial attack, Wing Commander Abhinandan Current Mig-21 Bison also crashed. He was taken hostage by Pakistan. However, India later brought him back.
After Russia and China, India has been the third largest operator of MiG-21. In 1964, the aircraft was first included in the Airforce as a supersonic fighter jet. The early jets were built in Russia and then India also achieved the rights and techniques to assemble the aircraft.
Since then, MiG-21 has played a key role on several occasions including the 1971 Indo-Pak War, the 1999 Kargil War of 1999. Russia stopped construction of this aircraft in 1985, but India continued to use its upgraded variants.
