Questions about the deployment of MiG-21 Bisons against Pakistan’s advanced F-16s during the 2019 Balakot dogfight resurfaced recently. Former IAF chief BS Dhanoa clarified in a discussion on The Lallantop that the decision was driven by operational realities.
According to Dhanoa, the MiG-21s were the only aircraft available in Srinagar at the time. Su-30s could not operate in the dogfight area due to terrain constraints, and upgraded Mirage 2000s were limited. While the MiG-21 Bison is a modernised version of the older MiG-21bis, Dhanoa acknowledged that more advanced jets, such as Rafales, would have changed the engagement’s outcome.
During the Balakot incident, Pakistani F-16s were intercepted following India’s airstrike on a Jaish-e-Mohammad terror camp, leading to a dogfight in which an F-16 was shot down, and Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman’s MiG-21 Bison was lost, with the pilot captured and later released. Dhanoa emphasised that the IAF fought with available resources under urgent circumstances.
