IAF retires MiG-21 ‘Swordarm’ Squadron

NEW DELHI: Indian Air Force has decommissioned one of the four remaining squadrons of the MiG 21 fighters on Friday. 51 Squadron, known as ‘Swordarms’, was raised at Chandigarh on February 1, 1985 under the command of Wg Cdr VK Chawla. The Squadron moved to its present location at Srinagar on May 1, 1986. 

The Indian Air Force After a long and meritorious tenure in the Kashmir valley, the ‘Swordarms’ pass on the baton of being ‘Guardian of the Valley’. The Squadron has stopped operations from 30 Jun this year. The IAF has three more MiG squadrons remaining now. 

It is the Squadron which not only thwarted Pakistan’s air strike on India on February 27, 2019 but the aircraft flown by Wing Commander (now Group Captain) Abhinandan Varthaman had shot down a Pakistan Air Force’s F-16. 

It is part of the process as per which the IAF is “Number Plating” (decommissioning) the remaining MiG fighter’s fleet. Number Plating a Squadron means it is placed in reserve, post phasing out of existing aircraft, until it is re-operationalised with new aircraft in future. Such squadrons can be raised afresh with modern aircraft and equipment in future.

The 17-squadron “Golden Arrows” is one which was resurrected in September 2019 with the induction of Rafale Fighter jets at Ambala Air Base.