Few individual aircraft types have been so inextricably linked with the history of one nation’s air force as the MiG-21 in India. Now, 62 years after the Fishbed first arrived in that country, the aircraft has been given a sendoff appropriate to its legendary status, one that was forged in combat during successive conflicts with Pakistan, and through the many decades in which it was the numerical backbone of the Indian Air Force’s combat fleet.
The last Indian Air Force unit flying the MiG-21 was No. 23 Squadron, “Panthers,” at Air Force Station Chandigarh, in the capital of the northern states of Punjab and Haryana. Today, the base hosted the retirement ceremony for the aircraft, which Indian Minister of Defense Rajnath Singh described as “family members” of India and the Indian Air Force, reflecting on the “courage, sacrifice, and excellence” of its crews.
India’s then-controversial decision to move away from Western types and buy the MiG-21 ushered in an era in which Soviet (and latterly Russian) fighters were dominant in the Indian Air Force, a situation that continues to this day. While India’s buying arms from Moscow is now well established, the Fishbed helped kick off this trend. The delta-winged fighter was selected in favor of rival Western designs to revamp the Indian Air Force. A key driver was the need to field a fighter that would challenge the F-104 Starfighter that the Pakistan Air Force was then operating.
The advantages of choosing a Soviet fighter included lower cost, the option to pay in local currency, and the offer of license production in India. The latter point would prove incredibly important, as experience building the Fishbed would set up India’s industry to produce increasingly more advanced types, both under license and increasingly also homegrown designs.
An Indian military delegation first got a look at the MiG-21 in the Soviet Union in the summer of 1962 and, only weeks later, a deal was struck between New Delhi and Moscow for the procurement and license manufacture of the fighter, as well as its engine, avionics, and air-to-air missiles.
After an initial cadre of pilots and technicians had undergone training in the Soviet Union in late 1962, the first Indian Air Force MiG-21 unit, No. 28 Squadron, the “First Supersonics,” introduced the type at Chandigarh in March 1963.
The first Fishbed in Indian service was the MiG-21F-13 (known locally as the Type 74), a fairly basic first-generation iteration of the fighter. By 1964, the Indian Air Force had added the improved MiG-21PF (Type 76) to its fleet. The new model added an air-intercept radar that gave it an all-weather capability. However, the cannons were deleted in favor of additional fuel capacity.
While the Indian Air Force was getting to grips with its first Mach-2 fighter, preparations were being made to produce the MiG-21 at three different locations in India. In fact, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) was established specifically to build the jet on the basis of the historic Hindustan Aircraft Limited. Before the jets could start rolling off HAL production lines, another batch of 44 ‘flyway’ aircraft was bought from the Soviet Union.
The next 60 MiG-21s were to be supplied in knocked-down form, for reassembly in India, after which HAL was to build the jets itself.
A specific version of the Fishbed was developed for Indian import and manufacture, this being the MiG-21FL (Type 77). This had an improved radar and began to be supplied in 1965, together with MiG-21U (Type 66) two-seat trainers. The first Indian-built (rather than assembled) MiG-21FL was handed over to the air force in 1970.
The MiG-21FL addressed the deficiencies of the earlier versions and included improvements demanded by the Indian Air Force. As such, it had improved brakes and tires, bigger external fuel tanks, a new gunsight, and a 23mm cannon pack under the belly. Close to 200 examples of the MiG-21FL were eventually completed by HAL, and the aircraft was used extensively in the December 1971 war with Pakistan, for both air defense and ground attack. When faced with the F-104, the MiG-21 emerged victorious in the course of four dogfights.
The success of the MiG-21 in the December 1971 conflict led to another new ‘Indian’ version of the Fishbed. This was the MiG-21M (Type 96), which was closer to a multirole fighter, and which followed the MiG-21FL in HAL’s production facilities from 1972. A total of 160 would be built between 1973 and 1981
Other important features of the MiG-21M included a new radar, an internal cannon, and an enlarged fuel tank in the spine. An improved ejection seat was fitted, and there were four underwing hardpoints for various new stores. The MiG-21’s landing characteristics were improved by adding ‘blown’ flaps, reducing the landing speed. A corresponding trainer was also produced, as the MiG-21UM (Type 69).
When fitted with a more powerful R-13-300 engine, the MiG-21M became the MiG-21MF (Type 96F).
India chose not to license-build the R-13, instead waiting for the MiG-21bis (Type 75) that was fitted with the far superior R-25 engine. The MiG-21bis was selected in 1976, and both the airframe and engine were manufactured under license by HAL.
By the late 1970s, the Fishbed was dominating the Indian fighter force, with the MiG-21FL, M, and MF serving with 17 squadrons.
It was only toward the end of the career of the MiG-21M/MF, in the early 2000s, that the Indian Air Force decided to re-engine surviving aircraft with the R-13 engine, which was considerably more efficient and maintenance-friendly.
In the meantime, however, India was operating the definitive MiG-21bis. As well as the R-25 turbojet, the MiG-21bis had much-improved avionics conferring a multirole air superiority/ground attack capability, more modern air-to-air missiles, and an enlarged dorsal fuel tank. The first of 220 HAL-built aircraft was delivered in 1978, and the last was handed over in 1987.
The MiG-21bis formed the basis of what would be India’s ultimate Fishbed: the Bison, or ‘son of bis.’
The contract for the MiG-21 Bison upgrade was signed in 1996, and the modernized aircraft were redelivered to the Indian Air Force between 2000 and 2005.
The MiG-21 Bison was something of an Indian/Russian/Israeli coproduction based around the Russian-made Kopyo radar that finally allowed the jet to employ beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles. The upgrade package also included an inertial nav/attack system, countermeasures dispensers, and some electronic warfare capability. The latter would come into its own during well-publicized mock engagements with the U.S. Air Force during the 2004 Cope India exercise.
Carrying Israeli-made Elbit EL/L8222 self-escort jamming pods, the Bisons were repeatedly able to get the better of U.S. Air Force F-15C/Ds, springing a major upset. The Indian pilots also exploited their jets’ small radar cross-section and helmet-mounted sights to fire high-off-boresight short-range infrared-seeking dogfighting missiles at the most opportune times.
It was this version that saw out the Fishbed’s long career with the service. When the MiG-21 was blooded again in combat, it was the Bison that was at the forefront of the aerial clashes with the Pakistan Air Force in 2019, after the Balakot airstrike.
In more recent years, its reputation was threatened by a mounting attrition record.
TWZ contributor and Indian Air Force historian Angad Singh explains that the MiG-21 fleet suffered approximately 26 accidents per 100,000 hours, which actually compares fairly well to other aircraft of its generation. The F-104, for example, suffered around 30 accidents per 100,000 hours.
Other factors also need to be taken into account. Firstly, the notoriously short range of the MiG-21 meant that sorties were typically short (around 35-40 minutes), meaning more takeoffs and landings, where most accidents occur. If you look at the accident rate per 100,000 flights, the figure drops to 15.
Just as importantly, the Fishbed was extensively used for training for more than a quarter of a century, which also exposed it to a higher level of attrition than would otherwise have been the case.
For those associated with the MiG-21 in Indian service, these losses will do little to tarnish the reputation of its first and longest-serving supersonic fighter, and one that played a unique role in the history of the country’s air force.
Author’s note: A big thanks to Angad Singh for his support in preparing this article.
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