MiG-21: Thunder set to fade

In my years of independent defence writing and reporting, I've had the privilege of seeing many national and international military fighter flying assets in action during peacetime.

- Sayan Chatterjee

But the Mikoyan-Gurevich Model 21—better known as the MiG-21—was never just another fighter jet to me. NATO calls it Fishbed, a codename given for quick identification of this Soviet-built aircraft.

When the MiG-21 first sliced through Indian skies in the 60s, its sharp delta wings and needle-nose fuselage seemed like something from the future. At a time when subsonic jets still patrolled the subcontinent, here was a fighter that could outrun its own shadow—Mach 2 at full throttle—heralding India’s arrival in the supersonic age. Six decades later, that future is about to become an etched memory. The Indian Air Force’s last two MiG-21 squadrons are preparing to shut down engines for good, closing one of the longest and most storied chapters in military aviation.