The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 is a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nicknames include: "balalaika", because its planform resembles the stringed musical instrument of the same name; "Ołówek", Polish for "pencil", due to the shape of its fuselage, and "Én Bạc", meaning "silver swallow", in Vietnamese.
The Israeli Air Force operates as the aerial and space warfare branch of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence. As of April 2022, Aluf Tomer Bar has been serving as the Air Force commander.
The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) is the aerial warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces, tasked primarily with the aerial defence of Pakistan, with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy when required, and a tertiary role of providing strategic airlift capability to Pakistan. As of 2021, as per the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the PAF has more than 70,000 active-duty personnel. PAF stands as the eight largest Air Force in the world. PAF is the largest Air Force of the Muslim world in terms of aircraft fleet. Its primary mandate and mission is "to provide, in synergy with other inter-services, the most efficient, assured and cost effective aerial defence of Pakistan." Since its establishment in 1947, the PAF has been involved in various combat operations, providing aerial support to the operations and relief efforts of the Pakistani military. Under Article 243, the Constitution of Pakistan appoints the President of Pakistan as the civilian Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), by statute a four-star air officer, is appointed by the President with the consultation and confirmation needed from the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 October 1932 as an auxiliary air force of the British Empire which honoured India's aviation service during World War II with the prefix Royal. After India gained independence from United Kingdom in 1947, the name Royal Indian Air Force was kept and served in the name of the Dominion of India. With the transition to a republic in 1950, the prefix Royal was removed.
Bagdogra Airport is a customs airport serving the city of Siliguri in West Bengal, India. It is located in Bagdogra, 12 km (7.5 mi) south-west from the city centre. It is operated as a civil enclave at Bagdogra Air Force Station of the Indian Air Force. It is the gateway to the hill stations of Darjeeling, Gangtok, Kurseong, Kalimpong, Mirik and other parts of North Bengal region. Siliguri, being a major transport and economic hub, the airport sees thousands of travellers and tourists annually. The Government of India conferred limited international airport status to the airport in 2002 with limited international operations to Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi and Paro. This is the second busiest airport in West Bengal.
Sqn Ldr Ajay AhujaVrC was a fighter pilot of the Indian Air Force who was killed in action during the Kargil War between India and Pakistan in 1999. His MiG-21 was hit by a surface-to-air missile fired by the Pakistan Army near the town of Kargil in the Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Ahuja ejected from the aircraft and parachuted to the ground. According to Indian claims, He was alive upon his landing before he was captured and subsequently killed by Pakistan troops, though, rejected by Pakistan. A post-mortem report conducted on Ahuja's body after it was recovered and returned to India showed that he had a fractured knee alongside two fatal bullet wounds to his head and chest. Reports by the Indian media of Ahuja's capture and killing by Pakistani troops during the conflict sparked a major uproar within India.
Tel Nof Airbase, also known as Air Force Base 8, is an airbase of the Israeli Air Force (IAF) located 5 km south of Rehovot, Israel. Tel Nof houses two strike fighter, two helicopter and a UAV squadron. Also located at the base is the Flight Test Center and several special units of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), among others Unit 669 and the Paratroopers Brigade training center and its headquarters.
Ramon Airbase is an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base in the Negev desert, 50 km south of Beersheba and 20 km northwest of the town Mitzpe Ramon. The base and the town got their names from the huge "erosion crater" Makhtesh Ramon south of it. The base is also titled Kanaf 25, it was formerly known as Matred.
The Libyan Air Force is the branch of the Libyan Armed Forces responsible for aerial warfare. In 2010, before the Libyan Civil War, the Libyan Air Force personnel strength was estimated at 18,000, with an inventory of 374 combat-capable aircraft operating from 13 military airbases in Libya. Since the 2011 civil war and the ongoing conflict, multiple factions fighting in Libya are in possession of military aircraft. As of 2019 the Libyan Air Force is nominally under the control of the internationally recognised Government of National Accord in Tripoli, though the rival Libyan National Army of Marshal Khalifa Haftar also has a significant air force. In 2021, the air force is under command of the new President of Libya, Mohamed al-Menfi that replaced Fayez al-Sarraj.
During the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965, the Indian and Pakistani Air Forces engaged in large-scale aerial combat for the first time. In the air war, which took place in September, both air forces conducted thousands of defensive and offensive sorties over Indian and Pakistani airspace. Both India and Pakistan claimed victory in the air war; Pakistan claimed to have destroyed 104 Indian aircraft and lost 19, and India claimed to have destroyed 73 Pakistani aircraft and lost 35 of its own. The air war ended in a stalemate.
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon has served the United States and the air arms of 25 other nations. Over 4,400 F-16s have been sold.
No. 51 Squadron "Sword Arms" was a fighter squadron of the Indian air force, based in Srinagar Air Force Station. The squadron was under the western command of Indian Air Force.
On 27 February 2019, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) conducted six airstrikes at multiple locations in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). The airstrikes were part of the PAF military operation codenamed Operation Swift Retort and were conducted in retaliation to the Indian Air Force (IAF) airstrike in Balakot just a day before on 26 February.
Squadron Leader Prashant Kumar Bundela was a fighter pilot of the Indian Air Force who shot down Pakistan Navy Atlantic over the Rann of Kutch soon after the 1999 Kargil War. He received the prestigious Vayusena medal for this operation on 26 January 2000. He died in 2002 in a MiG-21 crash.
Indian Air Force