The Legacy Of MiG-21, In Indian Air Force Service Since 1963
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has decided to retire the remaining squadrons of the Soviet-era MiG-21 fighter jets in September. They are being replaced with the single-engine Mk-1A.
Top Points On MiG-21 Jets:
MiG-21s, known as the workhorse of the Air Force for several decades, entered service in 1963 on a trial basis, a year after India bought them from the Soviet Union.
The supersonic fighter jets were India's first combat aircraft of non-Western origin.
They went on to become the asset of the IAF from 1970 to the mid-2000s, till the Su-30MKIs were pressed into action.
MiG-21s could operate in all weather and carry a wide variety of air-to-ground munitions in an attack role.
They also played a major role during the 1971 war with Pakistan, dropping about 500 kg bombs on the Pakistani air bases.
The war, which started on December 3 and ended with the Pakistani armed forces surrendering 13 days later, leading to the creation of Bangladesh, also saw the first-ever encounter between the MiG-21 and Pakistan's F-104A, with India dominating the skies.
MiG-21s remained an "immense asset" for over a quarter century, the Indian Air Force has written on its website.
"The quantity vs quality dilemma inevitably faced by most of the world's air forces as a consequence of spiralling costs was mitigated for the IAF by the large-scale availability of the MiG-21, which type will surely go down as one of aviation history's all-time classics," it has said.
The legacy of MiG-21, however, has been marred by several accidents in the recent past.
India, which produced more than 600 MiG-21s, will replace them with single-engine Tejas Mk-1A jets.
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New Indian Express
4 hours ago
- New Indian Express
Retirement of MiG fighter jets, concerns grow over delayed Tejas induction, shrinking combat strength
NEW DELHI: While preparations are underway to bid adieu to the last squadron of MiG aircraft on 19 September at Chandigarh this year, anxieties persist regarding the falling number of combat squadrons and, more significantly, the slow pace of production of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) intended to replace these longest-serving fighter jets. The jets of the Number 23 Squadron, MiG-21, will be flying for the last time. Inducted into the IAF in 1963, the MiG-21 was initially acquired for the role of a high-altitude interceptor. It was later retasked for ground attack. The USSR had designed it to counter aircraft such as the American U-2 spy plane. The first induction of the Russian-origin single-engine MiG-21 fighters took place in 1963, with different versions joining the IAF subsequently. As of now, the IAF continues to operate one squadron of the MiG-21 Bison at Suratgarh. A squadron in the IAF comprises 16–18 aircraft. However, an element of anxiety persists within the combat fraternity of the Air Force: following the retirement of the 23 Squadron, the IAF's combat squadron strength will fall to its lowest ever—29 squadrons—against the sanctioned strength of 42. 'It is a logical move as there is a shift in aerial combat—from close combat to acquisition and attack with missiles, which initially ranged a few kilometres but now exceed 100 kms,' said a fighter pilot, adding, 'The war now includes electronic warfare and has progressed to an informatised format.' The move was long due and aligns with existing plans, as the aircraft has long lived its age. 'The Pakistan Air Force, which inducted the F-104 long back, no longer operates that aircraft,' said a source. The concern, however, is not the retirement of the MiGs itself; it is the absence of a clear and timely replacement. 'The delays in induction of indigenously manufactured Light Combat Aircraft Tejas,' said the source. Overall, the Indian Air Force operated 24 fighter squadrons and four training units of MiG-21s. The IAF flew over 850 MiG-21s over six decades—a scale unmatched by most air forces. The aircraft, often nicknamed the 'Flying Coffin', saw approximately 300 losses in accidents. Interestingly, the birth of Tejas is closely linked with the MiG's phase-out. It is due to delays in the LCA project that the IAF took time in retiring the MiG-21s and replacing them with the indigenously developed Tejas, the source explained. The LCA was conceived in the late 1980s to replace the MiG-21s. After decades of delays due to production issues, the IAF now possesses 40 of the initial lot of Tejas aircraft. Last year, the IAF signed a ₹48,000-crore deal for 83 Tejas Mk1A fighters. As The New Indian Express reported earlier, the IAF is keen to induct close to 100 LCA Tejas Mk-1A fighters. Once this order is fulfilled over the stipulated 15 years, the IAF will have 40 LCA, over 180 LCA Mk-1A, and at least 120 LCA Mk-2 aircraft. The first Tejas aircraft flew in 2001—17 years after the programme was initiated. The actual induction started 15 years later, in 2016. The first indigenous LCA was inducted in July 2016. The first IAF squadron to receive the Tejas was No. 45 Squadron, the 'Flying Daggers', which was earlier a MiG-21 Bis squadron. Tejas Mk1A is the newer and improved version of India's single-engine, 4.5-generation delta wing multirole combat aircraft, designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency. The delays in Tejas deliveries have caused anxiety, culminating in a 'no confidence' remark from the IAF Chief in February. The delay in the delivery of Tejas fighter aircraft by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) led to the comment by Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh. While inspecting an aircraft at Aero India 2025, Singh was heard telling HAL officials, 'I can only tell you what our requirements and our worries are... At the moment, I am just not confident of HAL, which is a very wrong thing to happen.' The video was captured and posted by the defence news channel NationalDefence. However, HAL officials have expressed confidence in delivering 12 Tejas fighters in this financial year. The Air Chief highlighted that the force has yet to receive all 40 Tejas Mk1 jets ordered in 2010. The Indian Air Force currently operates only 36 Tejas Mk1 jets, with four deliveries still pending. Since the 1960s, MiGs have touched the lives of every IAF pilot, directly or indirectly. As September approaches, the feeling of melancholy among them is only natural.
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Yuan's xiaopin, alongside those of his contemporaries, transformed fleeting sensory moments into radical acts of resilience, suggesting that beauty, not institutions, could outlast empires. The Ming Dynasty: A literary rebellion The late Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) was an era of contradictions. While Europe hurtled toward colonialism and scientific rationalism, China's Jiangnan region – the fertile Yangtze Delta in today's Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces – flourished via merchant wealth, global silver trade and a thriving print culture. Bookshops lined city streets like modern cafés. They peddled plays, poetry and xiaopin volumes like Meiyou Pavilion of Arts and Leisure (1630) and Sixteen Xiaopin Masters of the Imperial Ming (1633). The imperial examination system, a civil service written exam – once a path to prestige – had become a bottleneck. Thousands of scholars languished in bureaucratic limbo, channelling their frustrations and exhaustion into xiaopin 's intimate vignettes. 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In other words, he admired those whose lives resonated through prioritizing lived gestures over abstract ideals. In the late Ming's burgeoning urban and commercial milieu, xiaopin turned everyday objects into remedies for social isolation. In the Jiangnan gardens, late Ming essayists saw landscapes infused with emotion. At the time, essayist Wu Congxian called it 'lodging meaning among mountains and rivers:' moonlight turned into icy jade, oar splashes to cosmic echoes. Chen Jiru had study rituals – fingering a bronze cauldron, tapping an inkstone – curating what he termed 'incense for solitude, tea for clarity, stone for refinement.' This cultivation of object-as-presence anticipates American literary scholar Bill Brown's 'thing theory,' where everyday items invite embodied contemplation and challenge the subject-object binary that enables commodification. The Ming Dynasty-era scholar-connoisseur, Wen Zhenheng (1585–1645), turned domestic minutiae into philosophical resistance. 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Tracing a petal's vein, sipping tea until bitterness fades, lying flat as the machinery of productivity grinds on – these are not acts of shirking reality, but defiant gestures against the systems that feed on our exhaustion. They are affirmations of agency: microcosms where we rehearse what it means to belong to ourselves, and thus, to the world. Xiaopin 's revolution awakens in a flicker of attention: a reminder that presence, too, is a language – one that hums beneath the buzz of progress, waiting to be heard. Jason Wang is Postdoctoral Fellow, Modern Literature and Culture Research Centre, Toronto Metropolitan University.
Time of India
9 hours ago
- Time of India
Border courtesy continues between BSF, Pakistan Rangers
1 2 Amritsar: Even as Operation Sindoor remains on hold, an unwritten understanding continues between India's Border Security Force ( BSF ) and the Pakistan Rangers , reflecting mutual respect for rank and established border decorum. This courtesy persists even as the border gates between the two countries remain closed under the operation. At joint check posts (JCPs) in Punjab, where the two borders are separated by mere feet, junior officers or personnel customarily salute or come to attention upon encountering a senior-ranking official from the other side. This practice is most evident during patrols, security reviews, and joint meetings between the two forces. Referring to his recent visit to the Hussainiwala post, inspector general (IG) BSF, Punjab Frontier, Atul Fulzele said, "When I visited the Hussainiwala JCP, officers on the Pakistan side saluted me." He added that the gesture is reciprocal, with junior Indian officers also saluting senior-ranking Pakistani officers. According to him, this is part of a long-standing traditional border protocol observed by both forces. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Learn More - How Watching Videos Can Boost Your Income TheDaddest Undo Former IG BSF, Punjab Frontier, MS Malhi, said that although it may seem surprising that forces prepared to confront each other show respect for rank, this tradition of mutual courtesy continues despite the suspension of Operation Sindoor. He explained that this is a standard border practice, as personnel interact daily. Regardless of nationality, junior officers show respect to senior officers based on rank, which is universally recognised. Since the rank badges, dating back to British colonial times, are similar on both sides, personnel can easily identify and acknowledge each other's rank. "It is simply a routine gesture of respect," he said. Another former IG BSF, Punjab Frontier, Himmat Singh, added that junior officers mostly salute seniors during official meetings. "But sometimes, out of traditional border courtesy, the junior officials come to attention on seeing a senior officer of the other country," he said.
