The splitting of the five-aircraft "Badal" formation was a defining moment laden with symbolism India's oldest fighter plane had just passed the baton to its newest.
It was the MiG-21's swan song before being taken out of service.
It won't be around for next year's IAF Day flypast on October 8.
The MiG-21's 60-year history in IAF has been punctuated by crashes that have put the Sovietorigin aircraft's safety record under running scrutiny and led to an understandable chorus of concern and calls for its early replacement.
With upgrades, IAF has 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.
The maiden batch of six MiG21Fs entered service in MarchApril 1963 and IAF progressively inducted 874 MiG-21s. It has operated a raft of variants-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 and the latest MiG-21 Bison.
Esta historia es de la edición December 11, 2023 de Hindustan Times.
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