MiG-21 - Serving The Nation For 60 Years And Beyond?
The Indian Air Force's oldest supersonic fighter, the MiG-21 Bison, crashed on May 8 in Rajasthan's Barmer after taking off from the Suratgarh airbase. Three villagers died in the incident when a part of the fighter jet fell on the roof of a house.
The pilot ejected on time and reportedly escaped unhurt. The air force has ordered a court of inquiry into the incident, and reports suggest that a technical snag resulted in the crash.
The MiG-21's love affair with the Air Force is over 60 years old. The aircraft was inducted into the newly raised No. 28 Squadron - 'First Supersonics' and became India's first supersonic fighter to enter the fleet.
"The Flying Coffin"
Despite its 60 years of service, the MiG-21, which is the most-produced aircraft in the world, acquired the title of "flying coffin" due to the number of crashes and casualties suffered by the force.
The term "flying coffin" neglects the meritorious service of the MiG in the air force and shouldn’t be a qualifier for the MiG.
MiG-21's Crash History
Fighter aircraft are capital assets procured for long-term service. Over the years, upgrades are common, but the MiG-21 has already been in service for 60 years and is expected to serve for another two to three years.
Currently, the IAF operates three squadrons of the fighter jet. According to publicly available data, 294 MiG-21s have crashed since 1963, resulting in the loss of 148 pilots' lives in service to the country.
In the first ten years of its service, a total of 42 crash incidents occurred, claiming the lives of 20 pilots. From 1974 to 1983, 40 MiG-21s crashed, resulting in 25 pilot deaths. The numbers for subsequent periods are as follows: 1984-1993 - 71 crashes, 42 deaths; 1994-2003 - 91 crashes, 45 deaths.
The number of crashes significantly decreased from 2004 onwards, with a total of 30 MiG-21s crashing between 2004 and 2013, resulting in the deaths of nine IAF pilots. From 2014 to 2023, a total of 20 incidents have occurred, claiming the lives of seven pilots. 2021 was the worst year with five crashes and three fatalities.
The aircraft should have been retired earlier, but over the years, the air force has failed to meet its requirement of at least 42 squadrons, and the current number stands at 31.
Replacement Plans, Upgrade, and Reasons Behind Crash
In the 1980s, the government initiated the LCA project to develop an indigenous aircraft as a replacement for the MiG-21 fleet. The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) was established to design the proposed aircraft, and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) was chosen as the principal contractor. However, delays in the project and the sanctions imposed after the Pokhran nuclear test forced the IAF to continue using the MiG-21.
The MiG-21 93 UPG program was born out of delays in the LCA project. It was proposed to upgrade 125 MiG-21Bis (Bis refers to "second" in Russian) to extend its Total Technical Life (TTL) from 2400 hours, with an upgrade in its avionics, better view from the cockpit, changes in the airframe, and the Phazotron Kopya (Spear) multi-mode radar with a detection range of over 45 km that helped in equipping 'Beyond Visual Range' (BVR) missiles like the Russian R-77 on the aircraft.
The Rs 1,200 crore contract was awarded to MiG-MAPO (Moscow Aircraft Production Organization).
According to a Public Accounts Committee report from 2003-2004, the upgrades made the MiG-21Bis at par with its contemporaries, especially with the F-16s and Mirage 2000-5 that were procured by Pakistan during that period.
The upgrade of 125 aircraft and an additional 50 aircraft was supposed to be completed by 2003 but was delayed by three years. The last upgraded Bis was handed over to the IAF in 2008.
In a 2003-2004 Public Accounts Committee report titled 'Aircraft Accidents in the Indian Air Force,' several reasons were stated behind the increasing number of MiG-21 crashes.
The non-availability of Advanced Jet Trainers (AJT) in the air force, coupled with the MiG-21's unsuitability for transitional training roles, was the cause behind the increasing number of training-related incidents and adversely affected their combat capabilities. Pilots were trained on the HAL Kiran/Iskra before undergoing their stage III training on the MiG-21. However, in 2008, BAe HAWK Advanced Jet Trainers were inducted into the air force.
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| BAE HAWK Credits: Indian Air Force |
Air Force pilots undergo training in three stages, with the final stage trifurcated into the fighter, transport, and helicopter training. The non-availability of an AJT was one of the reasons, apart from the dated technology in the MiG-21, behind these incidents.
"The Ministry admitted that the MiG-21 and Hunter aircraft used for Stage-III training were not specially designed as advanced trainers and had inherent limitations for imparting air combat and weapon delivery training," the report stated.
It is important to note that the Public Accounts Committee report is two decades old, and since then several changes have taken place.
At the Aero India Show 2023, HAL unveiled a full-scale model of its tandem single-seat Hindustan Lead-in Fighter Trainer-42 (HLFT-42).
LCA Project Moves Ahead Slowly
The LCA was rechristened as 'Tejas' and took to the air on January 4, 2001, marking a historic moment for the Indian Air Force.
In the '80s, the Indian Air Force acquired the Sepecat Jaguar and MiG-29 from the Soviets, MiG-25 Foxbats, MiG-23, and MiG-27 as well as the Dassault Mirage 2000 from the French.
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| Mirage 2000 |
The Indian Air Force had to opt for foreign-built fighters due to the delays in building an indigenous fighter aircraft. The air force had to meet its requirement to defend vast territories from east to west and north to south and stay prepared for a two-front war.
Despite the delays in its development, the induction of the required 83 Tejas Mk1A jets would still take 4-5 years. However, the indigenous fighter's performance in different air shows has been impressive and is a silver lining. The 4.5th generation multi-role fighter made its overseas debut at Exercise Desert Flag in the UAE.
Regarding delays in the LCA project, a representative of the Air Force, who deposed before a Standing Committee on Defence (2022-2023), said, "We had made an aircraft before this. The last aircraft that we designed was Marut. So, after a gap of 30 years plus, we are now trying to make a fighter aircraft in-house. We took a giant leap."
"We could have gone for some middle-level or one-generation below aircraft. LCA is a four-plus generation aircraft. We could have gone for a third-generation aircraft with the conventional controls and with all the rudimentary dials in old avionics but we had to catch up with technology. I think it was a very good step taken, though we have taken much longer than we should have," the representative added.
The single-engine lightweight fighter is built by HAL, it uses the American GE F404 General Electric turbofan engine. India is yet to develop its fighter aircraft engine.
A Hindustan Aeronautics Limited's (HAL) top executive said the company is in talks with at least four countries including Malaysia to sell its fighter aircraft, while these countries have shown interest in the Tejas fighter but it's not final whether they are fully keen on buying Tejas or not.
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