Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21
Video from the channel Journey2 Defence about Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21, linked on its Above Ten Thousand entry. Duration: 4:23. Language: English. Video type: Documentary.
Documentary excerpt on the MiG-21's combat record and its spread around the world. Most of its combat hours were flown by non-Soviet pilots, which made it hard for Western analysts to gauge its real effectiveness.
It fought in the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War, the 1967 Six-Day War and the 1980 Iran-Iraq War. In Vietnam, North Vietnamese pilots used ambush tactics against the Phantoms; one of them claims to have shot down six American aircraft between April and October 1972. Americans and Soviets disagreed on the kill ratio. The Soviet fighter's success spurred a lightweight fighter competition in the United States, which was won by General Dynamics' F-16.
Finland and India also bought it. India built it under licence for 21 years, until 1988, producing around 350 units. China received 50 aircraft before the Khrushchev-Mao split, copied the design, and eventually amassed almost 3,000.