Inducted in 1964, the legendary fighter jet served in wars, airstrikes, and historic dogfights - cementing its place in India's military legacy

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is finally set to retire its MiG-21 fleet this weekend after over 60 years of glorious service. India was among the three major operators after the Soviet Union and China (licensed variant Chengdu J-7).

The MIG-21 has been the workhorse of the IAF. It was inducted in 1964 and has continued in service ever since. In August 2019, the IAF made headlines when its jets launched airstrikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist facility in Pakistan, known as the Balakot strikes. IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman shot down a Pakistani F-16 while flying a MiG-21 Bison, during a showdown between the IAF and Pakistan Air Force (PAF).   

The iconic MiG-21 protected the Indian skies through major conflicts. Its retirement is an emotional time for several generations of Indian fighter pilots. Indian media is replete with nostalgic reminiscences of great aviators and air veterans.

This author himself honed his combat flying skills in this aircraft starting in 1974, and was Team Leader of the MiG 21 Upgrade project in Russia during 1996-2000.

Legend in the making

The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 was designed as a supersonic jet interceptor aircraft by the MiG Design Bureau of the Soviet Union. The MiG-21 was an airplane that hewed to the classic "perfect is the enemy of good enough" approach. The Soviets wanted to fill the sky with thousands of simple, lightweight, reliable jets. That strategy had worked splendidly with the Soviet AK-47 rifle.

Over 60 countries across four continents have flown the MiG-21, and it still serves in a few smaller air forces 65 years after its maiden flight. It made aviation records, and became the most-produced supersonic jet aircraft in aviation history (11,496), the most-produced combat aircraft after the Korean War, and once the longest production run of a combat aircraft, now exceeded by both the McDonnell Douglas F-15 and the Lockheed Martin F-16. Its baby brother, the transonic MiG-15, holds the all-time jet record with around 18,000 units produced. The MiG-21 had a long production run from 1959 to 1985, and the airplane was thereafter upgraded by India and Romania.

Development of what would become the MiG-21 began in the early 1950s, when Mikoyan OKB finished a preliminary design study for a swept-wing prototype designated Ye-1 in 1954. After evolution, the first prototype with a delta-wing was the Ye-4. It made its maiden flight on June 16, 1955, and its first public appearance at Moscow's Tushino airfield in July 1956.

The MiG-21 was the first successful Soviet aircraft combining fighter and interceptor capabilities. It was a lightweight Mach 2 fighter with a relatively low-powered afterburning turbojet when compared to the American F-104 or F-5, or even the French Mirage III. The very characteristic shock cone in the front air intake was unique and peculiar, and left little space for a decent-sized radar. Like many aircraft designed as interceptors, the MiG-21 had a short range.

The MiG-21's simple controls, engine, weapons, and avionics were typical of Soviet-era military designs. The use of a tail with the delta wing aids stability and control at the extremes of the flight envelope, enhancing safety for lower-skilled pilots. This, in turn, enhanced its marketability in exports to developing countries with limited training programs and restricted pilot pools.

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The maximum permitted speed was 2,237 km/M2.05 at 13,000 m (42,651 ft), and 1,300 km/h/M1.06 at sea level. The service ceiling was 17,500 m (57,400 ft). The aircraft could operate from semi-prepared surfaces. The aircraft armament included one GSh-23 mm gun with 200 rounds. Aircraft had five hard-points with a capacity of up to 2,000 kg of stores, with provisions to carry combinations of bombs rockets and missiles or fuel drop-tanks. In later variants it included the latest air-to-air missiles the R-73, R-77, and R-27. Its low production and maintenance costs made it a favorite of many nations.

A total of 10,645 aircraft were built in the USSR. They were produced in factories at Moscow, Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod) and Tbilisi. A total of 194 MiG-21F-13s were built under license in Czechoslovakia and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) built 657 MiG-21 variants. About 2,400 J-7s were manufactured in China, including for export. Due to the mass production, the aircraft was very cheap. The MiG-21MF, for example, was cheaper than the BMP-1 Soviet amphibious tracked infantry fighting vehicle. The American F-4 Phantom cost several times as much as the MiG-21.

Operational history India

In 1961, the IAF opted to purchase the MiG-21 over several other Western competitors. As part of the deal, the Soviet Union offered India full transfer of technology and rights for local assembly. Since 1963, the IAF has inducted more than 1,200 different MiG fighters. In 1964, the MiG-21 became the first supersonic fighter jet to enter service with the IAF. Meanwhile, factories were set up at Nasik (aircraft), Hyderabad (Avionics), and Koraput (engines) with Soviet assistance. HAL produced 657 aircraft of three variants: MiG-21FL, MiG-21M, and MiG-21bis.

Due to limited induction numbers and insufficient pilot training, the IAF MiG-21 played a limited role in the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965. However, the IAF gained valuable experience.

The capabilities of the MiG-21 were put to the test during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. MiG-21s played a crucial role in giving the IAF air superiority in both western and eastern theaters. The 1971 war witnessed the first supersonic air combat in the subcontinent when an Indian MiG-21FL claimed a PAF F-104A Starfighter with its GSh-23 twin-barrel 23 mm cannon. By the end of the hostilities, the IAF MiG-21FLs had shot four PAF F-104s and two Shenyang F-6, and one PAF Lockheed C-130 Hercules.

In the eastern sector, the MiG-21 played a crucial role for the IAF, earning the moniker "runway buster" for its ground attack capabilities. Repeat attacks on December 6 and 7, 1971, successfully cratered the runways at Tejgaon and Kurmitola near Dhaka, effectively grounding the PAF in the eastern sector. On December 14, 1971, four MiG-21s from Tezpur airbase led by Wg Cdr Bishnoi (VrC & Bar) attacked the Governor's House in Dhaka, paving the way for the surrender of Pakistani forces.

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Because of the performance of India's MiG-21s, several nations, including Iraq approached India for MiG-21 pilot training. By the end of the 1970s, more than 120 Iraqi pilots were being trained by the IAF. On August 10, 1999, two MiG-21FLs of the IAF intercepted and shot down a Pakistan's Naval Air Arms Atlantic maritime patrol aircraft with an R-60 missile after it entered Indian airspace for surveillance, killing all on board.

However, the plane had been plagued by safety issues. Since 1970, more than 170 Indian pilots and 40 civilians have been killed in MiG-21 accidents. The aircraft engine operates very close to its surge line in some regimes, and the ingestion of even a small bird can lead to an engine surge/seizure and flame out. On December 11, 2013, the MiG-21FL was decommissioned after being in service for 50 years. The final Soviet-produced variant was the MiG-21bis, manufactured between 1972 and 1985.

MiG 21 Bison

To stretch its operational life and to give it significant multi-role capability, the IAF went for the MiG-21upgrade, in the mid-1990s, jointly with the MiG Design Bureau in Russia. The aircraft was named "Bison".

It had a MiG-29 bubble canopy and wraparound windscreen; far more capable radar; a helmet-mounted weapons sight; and beyond-visual-range, fire-and-forget advanced missile missiles such as the R-73 and R-77. These and other modifications created a fourfold increase in the airplane's capability and brought it up to roughly the level of the early F-16 variants. It also got a radar warning receiver, an internal jammer, improved avionics and a new head-up display.  It also received TV-guided bombs. In total, 125 jets were inducted in six squadrons.

The Indian Upgrade Team operated with the MiG Design Bureau in Moscow. The physical modification was at the "Sokol" Aircraft Plant in Nizhny Novgorod. During 45 years of serial production this plant manufactured about 13,500 combat aircraft, including MiG-15, MiG-17, MiG-19, MiG-21, MiG-25, MiG-29, and MiG-31, among others.

Indian pilot Harish Nayani and flight test engineer VT Nathan actively participated in the Bison test flight testing in Russia. The Indian team had excellent working relations with the Russians, and some old-timers had worked in India to help set up the MiG plant at Nasik. We also had skiing, camping, and cruise outings together. 

The final MiG-21 Bison proved a formidable fighter.  

'Rock-solid airframe'

The MiG-21 has been called the AK-47 of airplanes. "Rock-solid airframe," a former MiG-21 ground technician once told this author. "Really, the thing only needs to be topped off with fluids, and it just goes and goes."

When the US Air Force operated MiG-21s as adversary aircraft combat trainers, they found them to be, in the words of one crew chief, "Just like your family car. As long as it's full of fuel, you pull it out of the garage and start it up." "With a set of home socket wrenches and screwdrivers, you could get a lot of maintenance done on the little jet," said another crew chief.

The fact that a MiG-21 can cost just $500,000 as compared to a second-hand F-16C, which can cost a small country $15 million. MiG-21s or their Chinese-produced variants were flown in more than 60 countries. During the Cold War, the United States acquired many MiG-21 variants. American pilots spoke highly of the plane, and it performed more than adequately in aggressor training situations. Indeed, highly trained American pilots probably pushed the MiG-21 farther than most Soviet pilots could have done. There still are around 44 privately owned MiG-21s in the US. Draken International acquired 30 MiG-21bis/UM, mostly ex-Polish, and was last known to be still operating them.

Robert Farley wrote in the "National Interest" portal that a few designs stand the test of time. The B-52 Stratofortress first flew in 1952, and is expected to cross a century in service. New C-130s continue to roll off the production line, based on a design that became operational in 1954. But those are bombers and transport aircraft; they don't fight one another. Fighters face a special problem of longevity, because they must compete directly with newer models. Thus, very few fighters have had long life spans, either in production or in service. The MiG-21 was an exception. The MiG-21 would exceed Mach 2.0, with an internal cannon and the capacity to carry between two and six missiles. Like most fighters, the MiG-21 would eventually serve in a ground attack role, in which it can carry a limited number of bombs and rockets.

Most modern fighters don't fly much faster than the MiG-21 or maneuver much more capably. While they do carry more ordnance and have more sophisticated electronic equipment, many air forces can treat these as luxuries, as they simply want a cheap, fast, easy-to-maintain aircraft that can patrol airspace and occasionally drop a few bombs. The MiG-21 fitted the bill. The MiG-21 has reached 65 years, and probably will reach 70 years. It remains one of the iconic fighters of the supersonic age.

Several pilots attained ace status (five or more aerial victories) while flying the MiG-21. Nguyen Van Coc of the VPAF, who scored nine kills in MiG-21s, is regarded as the most successful MiG-21 pilot of all time. Twelve other VPAF pilots were credited with five or more aerial victories while flying the MiG-21. Additionally, three Syrian pilots are known to have attained ace status while flying the MiG-21.

The record for highest number of sorties in a MiG-21 belongs to Air Commodore Surendra Singh Tyagi (Retd.) of the IAF, with 6,316. He also holds the world record for the most flying hours in the aircraft, with 4,306. His extensive experience with the MiG-21 is recognized by the Russians. As a great era comes to an end, some ancient MiGs may still be flying in the hands of war-bird enthusiasts long after the last B-52 shuts down forever.