MiG-21. Where to look for the reasons for longevity?
В stories Every company that designs and produces aircraft, with rare exceptions, will have models to be proud of. For the Mikoyan Design Bureau, this is definitely the MiG-21. The most popular and most purchased Soviet fighter, the service life of which in the air forces of some countries has exceeded 40 years of operation, and for some even more - 60.
In many countries, the MiG-21 today stands on pedestals, witnessing and directly participating in the first air victories. Vietnam, Algeria, India...
Here in India, where they recently celebrated 60 years since the purchase of the first batch of MiG-21 and where they gratefully ushered the plane into history, there are several monuments to the Soviet fighter. And it’s not just that the planes stand on pedestals; I’m sure, unlike many other countries, they will never be removed.
Why is that? But because victories are customary to perpetuate.
India received much-needed fighter jets just before one of the Indo-Pakistani wars. At that time, Pakistan, thanks to the “beautiful” division of Indian territory by Great Britain, was located in the east and west of India, and military conflicts were completely commonplace.
Yes, the army of old India at the time of partition did not represent anything interesting, but the sovereign countries that gained independence from Great Britain began to gradually increase their military potential. Pakistan relied on relations with the United States, and India began friendship with the Soviet Union.
The Americans very successfully introduced their “masterpiece” Lockheed F-104 “Starfighter” to Pakistan.
Before this, they no less successfully supplied the German Air Force with this flying misunderstanding, and the German pilots gave the aircraft the well-deserved nickname “Widowmaker.” In the United States itself, the F-104 was not welcomed; only two squadrons were armed with it. But this is far from the first case in world history when the leading countries of the world “shared” something that they did not need at all.
The F-104 was a modern aircraft, very fast and well armed. Its downside was its difficulty in control and the resulting accident rate.
When these aircraft appeared in the Pakistan Air Force, the Indian military realized that they had to respond with something. And this something became the MiG-21F. And, as it turned out, it was absolutely not in vain, because two years later the MiG-21s met with the Pakistani F-104s.
During the Second Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Indian aviation shot down at least a couple of F-104s. If we judge objectively, this is how the Indians announced 11 shot down, but... we won’t. You can draw anything you want in reports, and modernity only proves this once again.
But the Third Indo-Pakistani war became a real triumph of the MiG-21. Pakistan really wanted, if not revenge (each country believed that it had won the Second War), then to put India in its place. And therefore, the military department purchased well not only F-104s, but also French Mirage-3s. Plus, as a bonus to the F-104, the Americans sold several of the most modern air combat control radars.
In general, the Pakistani Air Force was truly a “formidable force” and... and it all ended in simply a shameful defeat, because, having lost only one MiG-21, the Indians shot down 21 F-104s. The Starfighters lost all air battles in which they faced the MiG-21.
It is not surprising that after such a defeat, Pakistan donated all F-104s to Jordan. I would say - naturally, like “give to others, God, what is not good for you” or something like that. As a result, East Pakistan was given a long life, and the state of Bangladesh that appeared in its place is still alive and well.
And the MiG-21 became a symbol of the victory of the Indian Air Force in the skies of that war. And in general, it is not even surprising that the Indians formed such an attitude, which was expressed in the fact that the aircraft served until the last. Of course, modernizing from time to time. At the beginning of the XNUMXs, it was significantly “shook up” with the help of Israeli avionics and a set of new weapons. This modification was called “Bison” and fought in all Indo-Pakistani conflicts until recently.
And of course, the last combat milestone was the victory over the Pakistani F-16, that is, the second-generation fighter defeated the fourth-generation fighter. This happened in that memorable battle over Kashmir on February 27, 2019.
The battle, of course, was unique, the main merit in the results of the Indian pilot Abhinandan Varthaman, who attacked a numerically superior enemy (24 Pakistani aircraft against 8 Indian) and shot down a Pakistani F-16. True, the Indian MiG-21 was also shot down by the enemy using the JF-17 “Thunder”, this is the Pakistani name for the Chengdu FC-1 “Xiaolong” which... is a further development of the MiG-21! Or rather, its deepest modernization, carried out in China by local specialists.
An interesting picture: the MiG-21 and its descendant were being dismantled, while the Su-30 and F-16 were watching everything from the side. True, “Falcon” came under attack like that, but what can you do, battle is such a thing...
In general, the result is obvious, or rather, on the ground. Which once again proves the “timelessness” of the MiG-21 as an aircraft. Of course, there are planes that last even longer, but we won’t compare them now. Yes, we are talking about long-lived aircraft, which are strategic bombers such as the B-52 and Tu-95. But here’s the aspect: the strategist does not need to take off often to patrol and intercept targets; these planes are frankly saved for the day when their use becomes expedient. And a fighter is needed every day in war.
But what else can be said about the MiG-21, which was such an aircraft? “For every day” without breaks and weekends? After all, there are still a dozen, albeit not the most wealthy, countries such as the DPRK and Angola, where the MiG-21 is still operated? Eat. And note that we are talking specifically about the Soviet MiG-21, and not about its Chinese counterpart. Although the Chengdu FC-1 is also exported, although not as massively as it was with the MiG-21.
So what is the secret to longevity?
Many words have already been said on this topic, but they can all be summarized as follows: the MiG-21 is an extremely balanced aircraft.
The aircraft was developed almost immediately after the war, following the MiG-17 and MiG-19, precisely as a fighter with a delta wing, capable of reaching speeds twice the speed of sound. It so happened that the MiG-21 turned out to be not only very low-cost, but it was the cheapest supersonic fighter in the world to produce. Plus, the plane turned out to be very reliable and - extremely important for export - repairable.
World aviation experts believe that in terms of price/efficiency there has never been an equal to the MiG-21 and, most likely, there never will be. In general, Anatoly Brunov truly created a masterpiece.
But more than that, this masterpiece could be produced in the thousands. Structurally, the aircraft was not complex; on the contrary, the situation turned out to be where catching up and overtaking in terms of the number of aircraft being produced turned out to be as easy as shelling pears.
On one specialized forum I read an opinion: if the Third World War had broken out 50 years ago, somewhere in the early 70s, then the MiG-21 would definitely have conquered the skies over Europe, and this could have been done easily and naturally.
Of course, the NATO countries had good aircraft. The same American F-4, the French Mirage III mentioned above, the British Hunter. But their number could not be compared with the masses of MiG-21s that were produced at Soviet factories. “Phantom” - 5 thousand, “Mirage” - 1,5 thousand, “Hunter” - less than 2 thousand. MiG-21 - 11,5 thousand in 1970.
Yes, the NATO aircraft had every chance of running out before the industry of these countries would compensate for the losses. As it happened to Germany in 1944.
And they, American, British, French, cost an order of magnitude more than Soviet ones, or even more.
There were, of course, other types of aircraft, but it was the Phantoms and Mirages that the MiG-21 fought throughout Asia, Africa and the Middle East for almost thirty years. And, I must say, they looked more than worthy.
There is, however, one small aspect here. Our “respected” Western experts have done a titanic job in trying to belittle the merits of our aircraft. Of course, the Vietnamese pilots were inferior in training to the Americans, and the same Arabs were worse trained than the Jews. But if the MiG-21 had not been an outstanding aircraft, it would not have been adopted by 65 countries around the world, and would not have been produced under license by Czechoslovakia, China and India. Sorry, this is not an F-104.
It’s difficult to count how many military conflicts the MiG-21 took part in, because the MiG-21 pilots carried out combat missions without declaring war, like, for example, Chinese pilots shot down American reconnaissance vehicles, North Korean pilots sank a South Korean patrol ship without any war, and what was going on in Africa, we don't even know. We can simply say: those who were armed with the MiG-21, almost all used them for their intended purpose.
So, why did the MiG-21 serve for more than 60 years and what is its secret?
Naturally, there is no secret, or rather, it is not a secret at all. First, one more fact: the MiG-21 scored its first victory on August 18, 1962, 61 years ago. It was a Sea Hawk F.101 jet fighter of the 2nd squadron of the MFG.1 air wing of the Bundesmarine, which violated the airspace of the GDR in the area of the East German city of Eisenach. At an altitude of 11 km and a speed of 850 km/h, it was intercepted by a Soviet MiG-21 fighter, and during an air battle the Sea Hawk was shot down by fire from the MiG cannons.
The last victory was the fight above on February 27, 2019. After 57 years. Of course, maybe something happened in Africa, but there is simply no data.
It is clear that these were completely different aircraft. The German of American origin was met by a 2nd generation fighter, without radar, armed with cannons and unguided projectiles. The Pakistani F-16 was equipped with a third or even fourth generation fighter, with a radar, with completely modern homing missiles (if they weren’t modern, the Falcon would definitely have gone away).
A fighter that was able to step into another generation is, of course, nonsense. But it's a fact.
1. Huge modernization potential, which was ensured by a very thoughtful design of the aircraft. And here it is not only the installation of radar and sighting systems, but the use of the aircraft as a whole. Conceived as a superiority fighter, the MiG-21 became an interceptor, a front-line fighter, and a fighter-bomber. In other words, the design of the aircraft ensured the flexibility of using the vehicle in combat conditions.
2. Maintainability. This is not subject to discussion at all; the aircraft is both simple and easy to repair. There are simply a mountain of memoirs on this topic, but the very fact that the MiG-21 served in the Air Forces of African countries speaks exclusively to the fact that the 21st is simple and reliable, like a Kalashnikov assault rifle, because it is worse operators of military equipment than gentlemen Africans there wasn't, there isn't and there never will be.
3. Performance. Here the MiG-21 is generally a masterpiece, since it could be used not only from concrete runways of civilized countries, but also from small, conditionally high-quality airfields, and it could also easily take off from unpaved runways. This is precisely what provided a wave of customers interested in purchasing from African countries, where everything with runways is very sad today, but what happened 70 years ago is hard to imagine.
“We took off like ducks from muddy fields” - this is also about the MiG-21 in Africa during the monsoon rains. Although in Asia it was no better. But they took off.
4. Control. There was order here. Good visibility from the cockpit, automatic regulation of the power system, maintaining the air temperature in the cabin (air conditioners appeared much later), a comfortable workplace with compactly located instruments - let's say this: if Arabs and Africans flew on the plane, and even did it effectively - this is chic an aircraft with very simple and reliable controls.
5. Accident rate. Here I will give an example. One fan of American aviation poked statistics at me at one of our aviation forums. They say, I’m writing nonsense and the F-104 has BETTER accident statistics than the MiG-21. Fewer Starfighters fought, which means he is better.
How many Starfighters were produced? 2 pieces. How many MiG-578s? 21.
Who flew the F-104? Pilots from Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Norway, Spain, Taiwan, Jordan, Pakistan and Turkey. Well, a little like the USA.
Who flew the MiG-21? Pilots from Algeria, Guinea, Bangladesh, Egypt, Zambia, Laos, Nigeria, Tanzania, Somalia, Uganda, India and so on.
By the way, especially India. Apparently, there is such a karma there, but when they say that the MiG-21 in India is considered a very dangerous aircraft, I want to ask (and asked) in response: what kind of aircraft is not considered emergency? I can say with authority: “Boeing 707”, owned by the country’s Ministry of Defense. He is alone and practically does not fly, apparently out of harm’s way. Everything else in the Indian Air Force was beating, falling and exploding, let's say, systematically. And the history of any aircraft in the Indian Air Force since the formation of this Air Force is the history of how this aircraft was destroyed in a variety of ways by Indian pilots.
But there were a lot of MiG-21s there, so they ruined the statistics. And the same is true in more exotic countries, not burdened with well-trained flight personnel. And to compare this camp with those who flew the F-104, where Pakistan does not fit into the general outline, to put it mildly, is unfair.
So the accident rate of the MiG-21 is not only less, but if only European and American pilots had been at the controls, it would have been zero. Well, this is an opinion, of course, but it is justified by the fact that the European school of flight personnel has more than a hundred years of history, but about the African school there are doubts about its existence. They teach it all over the world.
6. Armament.
It is clear that over 70 years the aircraft’s armament has changed, and changed a lot. From the initial set of two 30-mm NR-30 cannons and two blocks of 57-mm NURS to what, say, the MiG-21bis or MiG-21-93 “Bison” had:
- double-barreled 23-mm cannon GSh-23L;
- X-31A anti-ship missiles;
- R-27R1 medium-range air-to-air guided missiles;
- RVV-AE missile launcher with medium-range active radar seeker;
- R-60 melee missiles;
- anti-radar missiles Kh-25MP and Kh-31P;
- KAB-500KR laser-guided bombs
- free-falling bombs of caliber from 100 to 500 kg.
- unguided aircraft missiles S-5, S-8, S-13 and S-24.
The MiG-21bis is considered to be the third generation of aircraft, but with the MiG-21-93 there are already doubts about this. A very deep modernization of avionics and avionics by Israeli specialists made this aircraft, if not the fourth generation, then very close to it. Indeed, in combat terms, the MiG-21-93 is capable of:
- conduct all-aspect air combat at medium and short ranges;
- conduct highly maneuverable close combat using missiles with thermal seekers and a gun;
- intercept attack and reconnaissance aircraft and helicopters;
- conduct aerial reconnaissance using radar operating in the mode of terrain mapping and detection of radar-contrasting targets;
- hit both area and small-sized ground (sea) targets with unguided weapons and adjustable aerial bombs (KAB);
- combat naval targets and enemy radars using surface-to-air missiles.
So, what is the difference from the F-16? Only the latter has more modern longer-range missiles. Otherwise, the MiG-21 is no worse. A new weapons control system with a multifunctional radar "Spear", a helmet-mounted target designation system, information display equipment based on a modern indicator on the windshield and a multifunctional display.
This is the secret to an aircraft's longevity: the balance between capabilities and the costs of implementing those capabilities. Can the F-35 deliver a nuclear weapon from point A to point B? Of course, if point B is within the range of the aircraft. Can the Su-34 do this? Definitely. Question of delivery price. The MiG-21 can do this too. But somewhat cheaper.
This is just an example of opportunity and cost. Of course, no one will equip such an old aircraft with special ammunition, although from the point of view of military cunning, this is quite an option. Just as if this modernized version is capable of easily taking down a fourth-generation fighter - well, it’s simply wonderful.
Of course, in reality there can be no secrets to longevity. There were simply aircraft whose service life was very short (the same F-111, F-117, our Yak-23), and which did not leave such a noticeable mark on history as the MiG-21 and F-4. By the way, the eternal rival of our fighter in many wars is also still in service in several countries. And there is a place on the world map where both MiG-21 and F-4 serve wing to wing in the country’s army. This is North Korea. But the Phantom is generally a special conversation, although the plane is from the same cohort, from those times when they were made for years.
Of course, someone can seriously support the opinion voiced by one politician that in the USSR, apart from galoshes and blue chickens, nothing else was produced, but you yourself understand that this is not so. They knew how to design and produce not only galoshes. And the MiG-21 is one of the confirmations of the opposite thesis.
"Balalaika" was a very specific and original aircraft, but at the same time a very reliable weapon. Even the Indians admitted this, having smashed more than 60 of these aircraft over 200 years. That is, to some extent, experts on the MiG-21. And the way in which India saw off its MiGs into history only confirms our gratitude and high appreciation.
Yes, there are not many aircraft in the world whose service life has exceeded half a century. And there are actually three combat ones, and all from the same era: Mirage III, F-4 Phantom and MiG-21.
And at the end I would like to quote an excerpt from an interview with retired Lieutenant Colonel of the Indian Air Force Suren Tyagi.
Suren Tyagi, call sign "Vandal", has seen many types of aircraft in his 34 years of service. I hope his call sign doesn't mean that he changed them after the accidents. But nevertheless, the Vandal’s track record includes the De Havilland DH.100 “Vampire”, Hawker “Hunter”, SEPECAT “Jaguar”, “Mirage 2000”, Su-24, MiG-29 and MiG-21. The latter is quite natural, since for many years it was the main aircraft of the Indian Air Force.
Tyagi's flight time on the MiG-21 was 4 hours versus more than 900 hours on other types of aircraft.
We received the MiG-21 in 63. Initially, the first batch of MiG-21 for the Indian Air Force was created as a high-altitude interceptor. Compared to other airplanes I had previously flown, it had very good acceleration.
At first we were forbidden to do anything on it except sit in it, give full thrust and rush straight and upward. Climb it 22 km at a speed of Mach 2,1-2,2. At that moment I was happy to do it on the MiG-21, it was magical.
I was young then, and when I heard that a Soviet pilot flying a MiG-21 in 60 set a record by climbing 34 km, I said to myself - let's try. Of course, our planes were different, but I tried and crossed the 24 km mark.
However, at this altitude I experienced an engine stall at Mach 2,4 without slowing down. There was no resistance at all. I gave the handle away from me, I wanted to lower my nose, but I couldn’t do it.
At an altitude of about 27 km, the nose of the aircraft began to gradually descend. I hoped that in the end I would still be able to start the engine again.
Having reached an altitude of 10 km on a clear glide path, it was only there that I was able to start the engine. Fortunately, in those days we did not have a flight profile recording system, and no one found out about this crazy act of mine.
By 1967, the MiG-21 configuration for the Indian Air Force was slightly changed, and it was already capable of operating on the ground. It did not have a built-in cannon, but could carry an additional ventral fuel tank or an outboard container with two cannons.
Later, the built-in 23 mm double-barreled cannon finally appeared on our MiG-21MF and MiG-21MS, which later began to be built in India under license. And I want to note that this vehicle was universal, stable, very maneuverable and good both for air combat and for work on the ground.
The MiG-21 had a record combat radius. It could fly another 280 km after it had flown the fuel-allowed range. It was the best plane, especially when there was a need to violate instructions.
We often engaged in dogfights with the types of aircraft we had at our disposal.
It's smart to know what aircraft, both yours and the enemy's, are capable of. The MiG-21 won 6 out of 8 air battles against Jaguars and Mirages. Can you imagine it? It is my personal belief that in situations in which the pilot is responsible, where he is not assisted by various systems, combat effectiveness is limited by his capabilities and the capabilities of the aircraft. However, in general, it (the MiG-21 - note) did its job, and even very well.
The big advantage was that it had a delta-shaped wing with a span of 7,15 meters, combined with a small radar signature, which directly affected its low visibility to enemy radars. He was noticed when it was already very late.
Today, this aircraft is still on combat duty, and it is still in great demand. Of course, it already has more systems, avionics and displays. I can tell you with great confidence that the F-16, which was created in the 70s, was designed as a response to the MiG-21BIS.
The flight characteristics of the MiG-21bis, which it had in emergency afterburner mode, were superior to the American. At an altitude of 12 km, it made a 360-degree turn in 12,5 seconds, while the F-16 turns in just over 14.
Of course, you cannot maintain such a turn all the time, but with the proper level of training, the MiG-21bis against the F-16 is capable of turning the situation in its favor.
Today he has everything, including a helmet-mounted aiming system and a head-up display, to give anyone a good fight. Its radar with the Bison radar, developed specifically for our requirements, can track up to 8 targets simultaneously.
However, due to the limited number of air-to-air missiles, the MiG-21 cannot fight more than 2 modern opponents at the same time.
In the exercises that we conducted with American, French and British pilots during exercises in India, the potential of the MiG-21 was appreciated by them. Basically, the MiGs were cooler due to the fact that the “enemy” pilots noticed our planes too late. It is also worth considering the overall low cost of this machine.
The MiG-21, with a new radar, helmet-mounted target designation system and an autopilot system with improved stabilization that prevents surge when firing missiles, is still an excellent second-tier aircraft.
At first we were forbidden to do anything on it except sit in it, give full thrust and rush straight and upward. Climb it 22 km at a speed of Mach 2,1-2,2. At that moment I was happy to do it on the MiG-21, it was magical.
I was young then, and when I heard that a Soviet pilot flying a MiG-21 in 60 set a record by climbing 34 km, I said to myself - let's try. Of course, our planes were different, but I tried and crossed the 24 km mark.
However, at this altitude I experienced an engine stall at Mach 2,4 without slowing down. There was no resistance at all. I gave the handle away from me, I wanted to lower my nose, but I couldn’t do it.
At an altitude of about 27 km, the nose of the aircraft began to gradually descend. I hoped that in the end I would still be able to start the engine again.
Having reached an altitude of 10 km on a clear glide path, it was only there that I was able to start the engine. Fortunately, in those days we did not have a flight profile recording system, and no one found out about this crazy act of mine.
By 1967, the MiG-21 configuration for the Indian Air Force was slightly changed, and it was already capable of operating on the ground. It did not have a built-in cannon, but could carry an additional ventral fuel tank or an outboard container with two cannons.
Later, the built-in 23 mm double-barreled cannon finally appeared on our MiG-21MF and MiG-21MS, which later began to be built in India under license. And I want to note that this vehicle was universal, stable, very maneuverable and good both for air combat and for work on the ground.
The MiG-21 had a record combat radius. It could fly another 280 km after it had flown the fuel-allowed range. It was the best plane, especially when there was a need to violate instructions.
We often engaged in dogfights with the types of aircraft we had at our disposal.
It's smart to know what aircraft, both yours and the enemy's, are capable of. The MiG-21 won 6 out of 8 air battles against Jaguars and Mirages. Can you imagine it? It is my personal belief that in situations in which the pilot is responsible, where he is not assisted by various systems, combat effectiveness is limited by his capabilities and the capabilities of the aircraft. However, in general, it (the MiG-21 - note) did its job, and even very well.
The big advantage was that it had a delta-shaped wing with a span of 7,15 meters, combined with a small radar signature, which directly affected its low visibility to enemy radars. He was noticed when it was already very late.
Today, this aircraft is still on combat duty, and it is still in great demand. Of course, it already has more systems, avionics and displays. I can tell you with great confidence that the F-16, which was created in the 70s, was designed as a response to the MiG-21BIS.
The flight characteristics of the MiG-21bis, which it had in emergency afterburner mode, were superior to the American. At an altitude of 12 km, it made a 360-degree turn in 12,5 seconds, while the F-16 turns in just over 14.
Of course, you cannot maintain such a turn all the time, but with the proper level of training, the MiG-21bis against the F-16 is capable of turning the situation in its favor.
Today he has everything, including a helmet-mounted aiming system and a head-up display, to give anyone a good fight. Its radar with the Bison radar, developed specifically for our requirements, can track up to 8 targets simultaneously.
However, due to the limited number of air-to-air missiles, the MiG-21 cannot fight more than 2 modern opponents at the same time.
In the exercises that we conducted with American, French and British pilots during exercises in India, the potential of the MiG-21 was appreciated by them. Basically, the MiGs were cooler due to the fact that the “enemy” pilots noticed our planes too late. It is also worth considering the overall low cost of this machine.
The MiG-21, with a new radar, helmet-mounted target designation system and an autopilot system with improved stabilization that prevents surge when firing missiles, is still an excellent second-tier aircraft.
This is my opinion about the plane. These are the conclusions. However, everyone may have their own opinion on this matter, but 60 years in military service is an indicator that very few aircraft in the world can repeat.
There is only a moment"...
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