MIG 21 shot down F16, MIG did not shoot down F16….shot down, did not….

There is a heated debate going on in the internet about the Indian Air Force MIG 21 shooting down a Pakistani F16.  Many wonderful stories were spun about how this Korean War relic could shoot down one of the most advanced 4^th generation aircraft are worth reading if one is in need of some laughters or cannot fall asleep. One version, the Pakistani pilot was a kopi licensed pilot and thought he was on vacation, or was snoozing when the Indian pilot closed in on him and shot him down with a catapult. Another version, the Indian pilot was so well trained that the Pakistani pilot was no match despite having a more advanced and modern aircraft. There are many fascinating stories of this dog fight, some claiming to have videos showing how it went.

The consequences of this modern myth, or was it a fake story, are more interesting. Lockheed Martin, the maker of F16 is going bankrupt as all orders for F16s were cancelled. F16s are now selling in the black market for the price of a song, like junks and no takers. All the American allies that have bought the F16s are retiring their fleet and moving them to the museums. No pilots would want to be seen flying a F16 for the fear of their lives.

On the other side of the coin, closed down MIG factories are roaring to life. Orders are coming in for more MIG 21s. Delivery time is 3 years from date of purchase order. The factories are running over time, working round the clock to reproduce these antiques that are now highly desired by many air forces for their air superiority, to be able to shoot down F16s. This is really a cheap and good story. But the prices would not hold for long as the demands outstripped the supplies and prices are shooting through the roof. Who cares about F16s or F22s or even F35s when all they need is MIG 21s?

Would Singapore be cancelling its buy orders for four F35s and ordering 200 MIG 21s instead for the same money? With the crash of the Japanese F35, Turkey is the first to chicken out and has cancelled its order for F35s and switching to SU 57s. Other European countries are also thinking of doing the same. Lockheed Martin is going to face the same fate as Boeing with more orders cancelled.

Actually I have another version of the truth. When the Pakistani pilot saw the MIG 21 he thought he was dreaming. Where on earth could one find such a relic flying, where was he, watching a Bollywood movie? It could not be true, no modern air forces in the world is flying such antique aircraft anymore. China has converted their MIGs to drones, fly by wire. The Pakistani pilot was in a daze. So, while he was musing about what he was seeing, he forgot that he was in a war zone and at war. So he was shot down before he knew what was happening.

And the shot was so accurate because he was not taking evasive action, and was so near he was blown to pieces, literary turned to dust, and his body could not be found, untraceable. If he was shot down like the MIG 21 by Pakistan, he would be able to bale out in time and be caught like Wing Commander Ahbinandan when he landed on his parachute. And he could then be sent home and received a hero’s welcome for being shot down and captured by the enemies and survived. And the remains of the wreckage would be found and filmed as proof.

This episode has given a big boost to Russian MIG aircraft manufacturer and big profits. There is no better advertisement than an antique shooting down a modern and advanced aircraft that cost a fortune to buy. The most unhappy people must be the Americans, unable to sell their modern aircraft anymore. Who would want to waste money buying expensive American aircraft that could easily be shot down by Russian antiques that could be bought for a song?

The above article first appeared in redbean’s Sunday tabloid.