The Indian Air Force is set to retire its Srinagar-based MiG-21 squadron ‘Sword Arms’ that Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was a part of.
‘Sword Arms’ is one of its four remaining squadrons of ageing MiG-21 fighter jets. The No. 51 Squadron is to be retired by the end of September, “as per the plan”, the defence sources said. The remaining three squadrons of MiG-21 will be phased out by 2025, they said.
He was a part of the squadron when he had downed an F-16 combat aircraft of Pakistan a day after the Balakot strike in February 2019, sources said on Monday.
“Ageing is a factor, but we read reports that even a modern aircraft can crash. A crash can happen due to multiple factors, including weather,” a source said. And, the retiring Srinagar-based No. 51 squadron, also known as ‘Sword Arms’, is “happening as per the plan”, he said, adding that the old fleet were in operation also as new ones were awaited.
The No. 51 Squadron or ‘Sword Arms’ is one of the decorated squadrons of the IAF, and it participated during Op Safed Sagar (Kargil conflict) in 1999.
