A classic if ever there was one; the MiG-21 'Fishbed'.
Artem Mikoyan's classic MiG-21 supersonic fighter is the subject of the most recent addition to the site. A remarkable success story for the post-war Soviet aircraft industry, the MiG-21 is the most mass produced jet fighter in history and served with the air forces of some 60 countries and is still front line equipment among a number of air forces over 60 years after its debut. Characterised by its relatively small size and simplicity compared to the then current generation of jet fighters being produced in the West, such as the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, which it was to meet in combat over Vietnam, the MiG-21 was developed into a bewildering array of variants and versions, with differing avionics and weapons fits. Only the McDonnell Douglas F-15 and Lockheed Martin F-16 have enjoyed longer production runs that the MiG-21, of which actual totals built are unknown, if Chinese licence built variants are taken into consideration, but Soviet production amounted to 10,645 examples, with licence production in Czechoslovakia and India totalling 194 and 657 respectively. Going to war in Asia, the Asian subcontinent, Africa and the Middle East, the MiG-21 has an impressive combat record and thus surely ranks as one of the greatest combat aircraft ever built. The coverage I have given this astounding little fighter doesn't really do it justice, but apart from the walkaround of a rather battered looking Polish Air Force MiG-21UM two-seater in New Zealand, I have included a small selection of photographs taken in various countries of active and museum bound MiG-21s. I do hope to add more variants of the 'Balalaika' to the page in future. Click on the image to go to the MiG-21 pages.
A MiG-21PF of the Luftstreitkräfte der Nationalen Volksarmee (LSK) of the former Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR) or East Germany, on display at the Peenemünde Historical Technical Museum.
