Mikoyan MiG21

First flown in 1956 and entering service in 1959, the MiG-21 ‘Fishbed’ has proved to be one of the most successful of all Soviet era jet fighters, seeing service not only with the Soviet air force but with numerous other air forces worldwide. Among jet fighters, the MiG-21 holds a wide range of records covering total production figures and the number of nations that operated it.
For the first time this book will provide a detailed description of every single member of the MiG-21 family, from the Ye-2 swept-wing development aircraft to the latest ‘distant relatives’ of the ‘Fishbed’ developed in China. Almost all versions will be illustrated by hitherto unpublished photos. Much attention will be paid to the MiG-21’s combat career, including the Vietnam War, the Arab-Israeli conflicts, the Indo-Pakistani clashes and various local wars in Africa. Also included will be fleet lists for each operator featuring known serials and construction numbers. A separate well-illustrated chapter will deal with the Chinese derivatives that were supplied to Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Iraq, Iran and other nations.

For many years the Soviet designers deemed the MiG-21 to be the best light fighter in its category – until a Northrop F-5E Freedom Fighter captured in Vietnam found its way to the Soviet Union and met the MiG-21 in mock combat. The results of this ‘fly-off’, which came as a rude awakening for Soviet pilots and designers. Yet the MiG-21 is not to be dismissed so lightly; the fact that thoroughly upgraded MiG-21s with state-of-the-art avionics still serve on with the air arms of Romania – a NATO member, incidentally – and India says a lot for the properties of this enduring fighter.

This occasional Midland series has already produced some spectacular books. The comprehensive nature and detailed analysis represented by the ‘Famous Russian Aircraft’ series has already been welcomed by critics and by readers. The book has detailed colour profiles and squadron markings, which will attract the interest of the scale modeller. This new addition to a highly successful and well-received series will be required reading for all serious aviation historians and modellers and will become regarded as the definitive account of one of the most influential jet aircraft to have been produced during the Cold War era.