Consulting Editor, moneycontrol (Network18); Tone deaf, coffee freak, lives on cigarettes. Tried to quit the last two 20 years ago. Now not fighting it anymore
From a known MiG pilot👇🏿
The only fighter ac I flew close to 3500 flights. Never wanted to change over. The F4, F5, F104, F16, All of them were developed with a single purpose in mind, ie, how to Counter a MiG 21.
USA formed one full squadron of stolen MiG 21 to train their pilots in Top Gun Combat school, just to get an idea how nimble, formidable and deadly a Mig 21 could be.
This is the story narrated by MiG21, as the IAF sends it into retirement in a few weeks from now.
Love and respect to my Proud Steed!
"I Am the MiG-21 – My Final Salute
I belonged to the Mikoyan-Gurevich family, but people fondly called me the MiG-21.
I was born in the erstwhile Soviet Union, but to be honest, I grew up in India. My precious youth, my maturity, my entire life — it was lived in service with the Indian Air Force. When people spoke of a steel bird that could break the sound barrier back in my day, they meant me. Even today, I say that with pride. It was the year 1963 when I landed for the first time at Ambala Air Base.
I still remember the look in the eyes of the pilots who saw me — full of awe, curiosity, disbelief. After all, even then I had earned the nickname “The Bullet That Flies.”
I was already counted among the finest fighter jets in the world.
I still recall how the young pilots — fresh out of flight school — would climb into my cockpit for the first time. Nervous, hesitant, and sweating just a little. And I would greet them gently, like an old warrior welcoming his apprentice. The moment my engine and afterburner began to roar, their anxiety turned into exhilaration. As I climbed into the sky, they were stunned by my raw power. With time, the senior, more experienced pilots became confident flying me. They learned to climb steep, bank hard, barrel roll, and perform aerobatics with finesse. And when we returned to the ground, their faces beamed like victors — proud and fulfilled. They were no longer boys. They were becoming India’s warriors of the sky. Before stepping down, they would run a gentle hand across my fuselage and whisper, “Thank you.” Then, off they'd go, eager to tell others what it felt like to fly with me.
I had just completed two years in India when my true test arrived —The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. Though still new, my pilots and I rose to the task. We patrolled India’s skies like hawks. No Pakistani intruder could breach our aerial borders. I chased down and intercepted enemy aircraft at blistering speeds, and it was in this very war that my true power was first witnessed — even by me.
The outcome? India ordered more of me from Russia. And then, a new dream took shape — I was to be built in India.
From Bangalore, Nashik, and Koraput in Odisha, my family began to grow at the HAL factories. Before long, we were a family of over 800 MiG-21s — strong and proud.
What can I say about the 1971 war? I roared across the Western Front, shooting down Pakistan’s F-86 Sabres, bombing enemy airfields into silence.
As the years rolled on, new generations of aircraft arrived —The Mirage-2000, the mighty Sukhoi-30, the Rafale, and Tejas — India’s very own dream, made real.
Did I feel sidelined? Replaced? Not at all! Even with them, I flew proudly in Kargil. And after the Balakot strike, when Pakistan retaliated, it was I, with Wing Commander Abhinandan, who brought down an F-16, and became immortal once again.
I had guarded India’s skies for decades. My time was coming to an end. This was the era of the new generation.
Still, when the pilots who had first learned to fly in my cockpit grew older — became Air Commodores, Air Marshals—they’d often return to see me. Their eyes would well up. And in that moment, I too felt a sense of fulfilment.
Now, the time has come for me to take my final flight.
I leave —not in silence, but with the thunder of duty fulfilled.”
Jai Hind.
🌹���🇳🌹
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