MIG-21 Fighter Jet: A veteran fighter pilot’s flying experience

The aircraft never knows or cares if you are a rookie or an ace. It just sticks to the laws of physics.

BHPian FLYBOYSID recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Been a while I last flew the MiG-21, but can never get it out of my heart.

Unforgiving, as the platform was due to its design, but it never disappointed in action. The thrill of being in command of this mean machine cannot be described in words. Every successful sortie filled me with immense joy and pride. Felt like ‘If you can handle this, you can handle anything’. Even today, I never miss a chance to see a MiG-21 take-off or land. Just wakes up the kid in me, it is still as exciting as it was when I first saw it as a young kid. Even my daughters notice the sparkle in my eyes at those moments. Some memories and feeling never fade I guess.

During the flypast, as the Bisons pulled up, I actually felt a tear build up. It felt as if something so dear was detaching. I am sure the ‘Third’ (commercially and in numbers) most successful fighter aircraft in the world will find it’s place of honour in Museums across the world and remain etched in history for eternity. In my heart I will continue to remain a Fishbed pilot forever.

The MiG-21 definitely requires a higher degree of skill, reflexes and Spare Mental Capacity to fly it like you own it. Definitely not for the faint hearted or those with slower processors. Due to lack of better trainer ac in earlier days, it was a quantum jump for rookie pilots from basic, forgiving and relatively slow platforms to MiG-21s. No simulators meant training in actual flight. If I recollect correctly you were expected to go solo in your eighth sortie. Training philosophy did not grant too many chances to those who could not keep up. All of us who have flown the aircraft have definitely scared ourselves at some point or the other at various levels of experience. The aircraft never knows or cares if you are a rookie or an ace. It just sticks to the laws of physics.

The Bison with its better avionics did help reduce the cockpit workload for the pilots as far as basic piloting goes. Aircraft today are definitely more advanced and take away the need for basic piloting calculations to a great extent. Advanced avionics, engines and weapons also make them potent platforms. So it’s a win-win for all. As the last of the Mig-21s start to wind down into the history, an era of aviation with brilliant engineering from cold war days will set. The hues of the brilliance will continue to inspire engineers and pilots alike forever.

A salute to all the brave hearts who ever operated or maintained this mean machine.

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