NEW DELHI/JAILSAMER, DEC 24
A MiG-21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed on Friday evening near Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. The Indian Air Force in a tweet later said that Wing Commander Harshit Sinha, the pilot of the aircraft, was killed in the accident.
This evening, around 8:30 pm, a MiG-21 aircraft of IAF met with a flying accident in the western sector during a training sortie. Further details are awaited.
An inquiry is being ordered.— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) December 24, 2021
“With deep sorrow, IAF conveys the sad demise of Wing Commander Harshit Sinha in the flying accident this evening and stands firmly with the family of the braveheart,” said the IAF.
“This evening, around 8:30 pm, a MiG-21 aircraft of IAF met with a flying accident in the western sector during a training sortie. Further details are awaited. An inquiry is being ordered,” the IAF tweeted.
With deep sorrow, IAF conveys the sad demise of Wing Commander Harshit Sinha in the flying accident this evening and stands firmly with the family of the braveheart.
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) December 24, 2021
The plane crashed in the Desert National Park area under the Sam police station, said Jaisalmer SP.
This is the fifth crash involving a Mig-21 in 2021. The IAF’s oldest fighter jet has been in service for six decades, though the models fielded at present are heavily upgraded. Plans to replace the jet were drawn up since the 1990s with the proposal of the Light Combat Aircraft. However, with Tejas inducted only in 2019, the MiG-21 has continued flying, and is expected to do so until 2030.
Earlier this week, the Defence Ministry told the Rajya Sabha that Tejas was not being inducted as a replacement for the MiG-21 but rather as part of the IAF’s modernisation. The IAF faces a shortfall of fighters in order to meet its 42-squadron requirement for a two-front war.
