Overview
- On September 26, No. 23 Squadron “Panthers” will make the type’s final flights over Chandigarh before decommissioning, following a full dress rehearsal held on Wednesday.
- Air Chief Marshal A P Singh and Squadron Leader Priya Sharma are slated to fly MiG-21s in the Badal and Panther formations, with a water-cannon salute planned after landing.
- Jaguars and Tejas will join the ceremony, which also features the Akash Ganga skydiving team and the Surya Kiran aerobatic team, in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and senior military leaders.
- Inducted in 1963 as India’s first supersonic fighter, the MiG-21 became the IAF’s backbone through multiple wars while also recording a high accident toll widely reported as more than 400 crashes and about 200 pilot deaths.
- The retirement begins a gradual replacement by indigenous Tejas aircraft, with reports pointing to major new Mk-1A orders as the IAF’s fighter squadron strength temporarily dips to around 29.