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A warbird like no other, says MIG-21's longest buddy | Chandigarh News - The Times of India

CHANDIGARH: In the MiG-21 cockpit, man and machine became one. Metal and sinew fused to create a warbird that punched above its weight -- like an ageing prize-fighter.Hear this from the pilot who has 4,306 hours on the MiG-21 -- more than anyone else in the world.On Friday, as the Indian Air Force formally retires the legendary warhorse, Air Commodore SS Tyagi (Retd) will be there to witness the final flight in Chandigarh.Air Commodore Tyagi (Retd) flew 6,316 sorties on the MiG-21 during his service with the Air Force from 1965 to 1996. Of course, it makes him the man with the deepest, most intimate experience of the fighter.He bristles at the mention of 'flying coffin' - the tag, that IAF pilots say, was stamped unfairly on the MiG-21.Yes, the MiG-21 had its quirks -- its high landing speed among them -- but when handled right, it proved a remarkably reliable warhorse.To him, the aircraft was a demanding buddy. "If I demand and I pamper and ask for 100 percent, it gives me 105 percent. If I mishandle, there's no getting away. That was the beauty of the MiG-21 -- it rewarded skill and punished carelessness," he said.Tyagi recalled one morning when his squadron flew 60 sorties between 7am and 1.30pm. "Such feats were possible only on the MiG-21. At one point, we could even turn around the aircraft in seven minutes," he said. "It demanded discipline, teamwork, and precision, and it gave back more than what you put in."He first strapped into the aircraft in 1968. For him, every sortie demanded complete stillness of mind. "The moment you closed the canopy of a MiG, it was like meditation," he said, recalling how maps were pressed against the canopy for navigation, visual corrections were made on the fly, and the sky constantly scanned for enemy aircraft. "Your mind had to be centred on one thing only -- hitting the target within seconds, reaching the rendezvous on time, and protecting your formation. Today, you have everything feed into a chip and on the mission day, it guides you."What's missed in the 'coffin' talk on MiG-21 is that Indian pilots often try to save a stricken bird, realising full well that it could cost them their life."We thought, we are soldiers of a poor country, and we cannot afford to lose aircraft," he said, pointing out that pilots often stayed with the jet even after a flame-out, trying to save it instead of ejecting immediately. "Relighting the engine could take up to 42 seconds and by that time, you could be already done," he recalled. Every decision had to be made instantly.Accidents, he explained, were usually the result of external factors -- like bird strikes near expanding airfields or maintenance challenges, rather than flaws in the aircraft itself.Even as newer fighters with advanced electronics now dominate the skies, Tyagi believes the MiG-21 taught something irreplaceable. "Modern jets are full of safeguards, but the MiG-21 showed you that human power is far more. It taught you to trust your training, your instincts, and your judgment under pressure."On Friday, as the Air Force closes the chapter on its longest-serving fighter, Tyagi will be among those watching. For him, the farewell is not just to a machine but to a way of flying that demanded total mastery. "The MiG-21 was an excellent aircraft. To call it a coffin is unjust to the thousands who flew and mastered it," he said.

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