Weeks after Rajasthan tragedy, IAF temporarily grounds MiG-21 squadrons

NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Saturday temporarily grounded its fleet of around 50 MiG-21 fighter aircraft weeks after one of them crashed in Rajasthan's Hanumangarh.
"The MiG-21 fleet has been grounded till the investigations are carried out and reasons for the crash are ascertained," news agency ANI quoted senior defence officials as saying.
Earlier this month, a MiG-21 fighter aircraft of the IAF crashed at Suratgarh in Hanumangarh district during an operational training sortie.In the accident, the lives of three locals were lost said an official statement.

The aircraft wreckage fell on a house in Bahlol Nagar in Hanumangarh district, during which three women died. Three persons were also injured in the accident, who were rushed to a hospital in the district.
The phasing out of delta-wing MiG-21s, which lack modern systems with built-in safety mechanisms, has been repeatedly deferred due to the depleting number of IAF fighter squadrons and the huge delays in induction of new fighters, especially the indigenous Tejas light combat aircraft.

There are only three MiG-21 squadrons operating in the IAF and all of them are going to be phased out by the early part of 2025, officials said.
Over 400 of the 872 MiG-21s progressively inducted since the 1960s have been lost in accidents since 1971-72, killing over 200 pilots and 50 civilians on the ground.
The IAF has 31 combat aircraft squadrons including three of the MiG-21 Bison variant.
(With agency inputs)