MiG-21 is safe: Indian Air Force

MiG-21 crash ratio has drastically
declined in a decade, claims IAF

BY A CORRESPONDENT
11th January 2006

The MiG-21 fighter plane is safe, says the Indian Air Force. The IAF in a press conference on Tuesday stated that the MiG-21 accident levels are now similar to that of other military aircraft in India.

The ageing MiG-21 fleet has come under fire several times, after several pilots were killed in repeated MiG-21 crashes in India. India is one of the few countries which use the 1960s Soviet era aircraft to its military defence.

Also read: MiG-21 crash movie cleared by Indian Air Force

There have been repeated demands to ground the MiG-21 fleet. However, the Indian Air Force and the government have always stood by the aircraft's reliability.

Said IAF Flight Inspection & Safety DG Air Marshal P S Ahluwalia: "The accident rate of the MiG-21 has been brought down from a high of 2.89 (per 10,000 flying hours) to 0.6 or even lower presently - its lowest accident rate ever." He attributed the increased safety of the MiG due to improved strategy, professionalism and perseverance.

Regarding the indigenously-developed Advanced Light Helicopter Dhruv for military use, he said that there was no problem with the craft; and that it needs some finetuning. As of now, the Dhruv fleet has been grounded following a crash in Andhra Pradesh last month.

The MiG-21s have been termed flying coffins, following several crashes. But the IAF now says that its accident rate has now been reduced by 56% in a decade.

The MiG-21 is the backbone of the Indian Air Force. Replacing MiGs with a new fleet would take enormous cost, and considerable time lag. This logic has always forced authorities to look at the short-term option of finetuning MiGs rather than look at future needs. The MiG is one of the oldest and heaviest military aircraft in use.