Ex-IAF chief explains why India fielded MiG-21 vs Pak F-16 during Balakot dogfight

The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) tactical decisions during the 2019 Balakot air battle led many to wonder why MiG-21 Bison fighter jets were deployed against the more advanced Pakistani F-16s. Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman’s MiG-21 Bison was shot down during the battle, leaving many wondering whether deploying the MiGs during the dogfight was a wise decision.

During a recent discussion on The Lallantop, India Today’s sister website, former Air Force Chief BS Dhanoa raised concerns over the choice of aircraft, acknowledging that questions had been raised over whether more advanced aircraft could have been deployed during the battle.

He clarified that the selection was not a matter of preference but was dictated by the immediate operational realities faced by the IAF.

When Dhanoa was asked during the discussion why MiG-21 Bisons were flown when the IAF knew it would have to deal with F-16s, he replied: “Did we have better aircraft?”

“There were only MiG-21s in Srinagar, and the Su-30s could not enter the area where the dogfight was taking place as the topography of the region was not suitable. HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) was supposed to provide 27 upgraded Mirage 2000s that could operate there, but we had only seven. We had the LCA (Tejas fighter jet too, but no weapons to support it,” he said.

“The MiG-21s were deployed because we had no other option. If you ask me personally, the MiG-21 should not have been there at all. Even our Prime Minister has said that the outcome would have been different if we had Rafales. If the enemy strikes, we have to fight with what we have, there is no other option,” the former IAF chief added.

On 26 February 2019, MiG-21 Bisons attacked Pakistani F-16s following the Balakot airstrike on a Jaish-e-Mohammad terror camp, carried out in retaliation for the Pulwama attack. The next day, Pakistani fighter jets attempted to attack military installations in Jammu and Kashmir, prompting the IAF to fly MiG-21s.

During the dogfight, a Pakistani F-16 was shot down, while an Indian MiG-21 Bison was also lost, and the pilot, Wing Commander Varthaman, was captured by Pakistan before being released two days later.

The incident raised questions about why the IAF continued to use the Soviet-era MiG-21 and why this older fighter jet was deployed against the much more advanced F-16s.

In the aftermath of the dogfight, Dhanoa, who was the IAF chief during the Balakot attacks, defended the use of the MiG-21 Bison.

He emphasized that the Bison is a modernized version of the older MiG-21bis, with improved weapon systems and improved air-to-air missiles.

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