DNA Exclusive: Why MiG-21 is known as India's 'Flying Coffin' - An analysis

New Delhi: Two Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots were killed after their twin-seater MiG-21 trainer aircraft crashed during a training sortie near Barmer in Rajasthan on Thursday. However, this is not the first such incident. Since January 2021, 6 MiG-21 aircraft have been involved in accidents, killing a total of five pilots. 

In today’s DNA, Zee News’ Rohit Ranjan analysed the dangers of flying these “aging” MiG-21 fighter aircraft, also known as the 'Flying Coffin'. MiG series fighter aircraft have been the backbone of the Indian Air Force (IAF) for the last 50 years. The IAF has received more than 850 MiG fighters since 1963. These aircraft also played a decisive role for the country in the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war, then the war of 1971, and also in the 1999 Kargil war. 

वायुवीरों को 'हराने वाली' MIG-21 की रिपोर्ट...देखिए #DNA LIVE @irohitr के साथ

+MIG से 'मुत्यु वाली उड़ान' का विश्लेषण
+भारत में भ्रष्टाचार का 'सदाबहार' मौसम ?
+बंगाल में भ्रष्टाचार के और कितने पार्थ ?
+आपकी फिटनेस बताने वाला गैजेट कितना Fit? https://t.co/98jo3ARtZf — Zee News (@ZeeNews) July 29, 2022

Although these aircraft are more than 50 years old, even today an upgraded MiG 21 aircraft can compete with any modern aircraft in the sky. The fighting capability of these MiG series aircraft is intact even today and it is infallible but the record of this aircraft is not very good in terms of safety. 

By 2012, nearly half of India's fleet of 872 MiGs had crashed. 38 MiG-21 aircraft crashed in 10 years between 2003 and 2013. While in the last 10 years, 20 MiG-21 planes have been involved in accidents. Here are the five reasons believed to be behind the crashing of MiG series planes:

1. The strength of the MiG series aircraft is their biggest weakness. In the sky, these aircraft can fly at a speed of 2500 kilometers per hour, which makes them one of the fastest fighter jets. Experts believe that due to its high speed it becomes very difficult to operate this aircraft and the chances of accidents increase.

2. Another reason is the design of the aircraft of this series– experts say that the canopy of this aircraft is very small in size. It is said that due to the small size of the canopy, many times the pilot does not see the runway and as the speed of the aircraft is very high, this probably leads to accidents. 

3. The third reason is the longevity of these aircraft– India got the first MiG series aircraft in the year 1963, but even after several decades, these aircraft are still serving in the Indian Air Force. Although there are many MiG aircraft, which have been retired and are adorning museums and dhabas today. One such MiG-21 aircraft is parked outside a dhaba in Rohtak, Haryana. 

4. Russia, which makes MiG planes, has not been manufacturing them since 1990. Therefore, to maintain these planes in service, India has to take its spare parts from Israel and other countries, and using spare parts from other companies also increases the chances of accidents.

5. And the last reason is that the MiG series aircraft are single-engine fighter aircraft, so when the engine fails during flight, there is no second engine in the aircraft to support it and hence it is difficult to prevent accidents.