A MiG-21 Bison aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed near the border area of Suratgarh, Rajasthan. No casualties were reported as the pilot had managed to eject safely.
According to the IAF, the incident occurred on Tuesday evening due to a technical malfunction. The engine of the fighter jet had reportedly caught fire as soon as it had taken flight for a night training sortie.
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The IAF said in an official statement that a Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident.
During a training sortie in the western sector, a MiG-21 Bison aircraft experienced a major technical malfunction this evening. The pilot ejected safely at about 2015 hrs. There is no loss of life. An Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident.
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) January 5, 2021
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Flying Coffins
The MiGs in possession of the Indian Air Force are dubbed as ‘Flying Coffins’ and ‘widow-makers’ for a reason. The terms were first used by India’s former Minister of Defence while informing the Parliament that more than half of the 872 MiGs that it had purchased from Russia had been lost in accidents.
An Indian publication reported that nearly 200 Indian pilots and 50 civilians have died in MiG-21 accidents since 1970. Even the IAF plane that was downed in the famous airborne dogfight in Pakistan was a MiG-21.
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