Frequent MiG accidents highlight the problem of national defense modernization
Post Date – 12:15 AM, Wednesday – 5/10/23
Frequent MiG accidents highlight the problem of national defense modernization
They’re called “flying coffins” for a reason. The aging Soviet-era aircraft, the MiG-21, has a poor safety record. The latest incident in Rajasthan’s Hamumangarh district, in which three people were killed after an Indian Air Force MiG-21 crashed, casts serious doubts on its combat capability. The MiGs joined the IAF in 1963 but were questioned due to their poor record. Recent accidents have once again focused attention on safety issues. More than 205 accidents involving MiG aircraft have been reported since their inception. The key question remains why is the IAF using these planes despite their poor safety record? The IAF continued to rely on the MiG, although the Soviet Air Force (known for designing the aircraft) retired it in 1985. Although the IAF had a three-year timetable for phasing out the MiG-21 fighter squadrons, the planned replacement did not proceed as planned. The indigenously developed Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) ‘Dhruv’ also failed to inspire confidence as it was involved in four accidents in the past six months. The armed forces have suffered a series of fatal accidents, mainly due to technical failures. The old MiG-21 jets and Cheetah/Chetak helicopters, both of which should have been retired decades ago, have a particularly appalling record of crashes. In just over five years, some 55 service members were killed in more than 50 plane and helicopter accidents.
Older aircraft lacking modern avionics and inherent safety features, insufficient training and supervision of pilots and technicians, poor maintenance and overhaul practices, and lack of quality control of spare parts all contribute to an unacceptably high crash rate. For more than two decades, the armed forces have required 498 new light utility helicopters to replace their aging Cheetah and Chetak fleet. But their replacement hasn’t happened yet. The frequency of IAF crashes has become an embarrassing reality. The frequent occurrence of accidents highlights the problems in the modernization of national defense. Although the IAF has been replacing the MiG-21 with the more powerful Sukhoi Su-30 and the indigenously built Tejas light fighter, it has been hampered by the slow introduction of the Tejas and facing multiple development delays. The Indian Air Force is severely short of aircraft. Now reduced to 31 fighter squadrons, the ideal requirement is 42 squadrons to meet the two front challenges from Pakistan and China. This number could be reduced to 28 squadrons by 2024-25, when all MiG-21s have been phased out. The IAF is plagued by aging aircraft, slow progress in local production and the slow pace of bringing in foreign imported aircraft. Modernizing the military has been an unfulfilled promise of successive governments. Greater private sector involvement is needed to increase local production.
