MiG-21 Fighter Jet Will Be Phased Out By Indian Air Force In September

The MiG-21 - that redoubtable warhorse of the Indian Air Force - will be phased out of active service by September, to be replaced by the newer and nimbler Tejas Mk1A fighter jets.

The IAF has 36 MiG-21 planes left in its arsenal, a far cry from the nearly 900 - of which around 660 were built in India - that so successfully protected the nation's skies and territories.

The Russian-made jet first entered service in India in 1963.

In October 2023, MiG-21 fighter aircraft from the No 4 squadron flew for one last time over the town of Barmer in Rajasthan, a 'farewell and thank you for the memories' moment shared with the planes taking up its role in the border state, the also Russian-made Sukhoi Su-30MKI jets.

"We will stop flying the MiG-21 fighter aircraft by 2025 and will replace them with the LCA Mark-1A," then-Air Force chief, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari said.

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