The MiG-21 saw frequent action in the Vietnam War and was one of the most advanced aircraft at the time. However, many North Vietnamese aces preferred flying the MiG-17, due to the high wing loading on the MiG-21's. With high wing loading, the MiG-21 was not as agile or manueverable as the MiG-17. Employing a delta wing configuration, it was the first successful Soviet aircraft combining fighter and interceptor in a single aircraft. It was a lightweight fighter, achieving Mach 2 speed using a relatively low-powered afterburning turbojet, and is thus comparable to the American F-104 Starfighter and French Dassault Mirage III.

It was also used extensively in the Middle East conflicts of the 1960s and 1970s, by the air forces of Egypt, Syria and Iraq against Israel. The plane was outclassed by the more modern F-15 Eagle (designed primarily to combat the Soviet MiG-25 "Foxbat"), which was acquired by Israel in the 1970s. The Indian Air Force has been one of the largest users of this plane after it was used in the 1971 war with good results. The war also witnessed the first supersonic air combat in the subcontinent when a MiG-21 shot down a F-104 Starfighter. It was also used as late as 1999 in the Kargil War with mixed results, and employed during the early stages of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, but was soon outclassed by the newer MiG-23 and MiG-27.

Due to the lack of available information, early details of the MiG-21 were often confused with those of the similar Sukhoi fighters also under development. Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1960-1961 describes the "Fishbed" as a Sukhoi design, and uses an illustration of the Su-9 "Fishpot."

This particular 1:72 scale Czechoslovak Air Force MiG-21MF fighter was flown by the Czech Air Force Test Squadron, known as the "Stress Team". Sold Out!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 8-inches
Length: 3-3/4-inches

Release Date: August 2007

Historical Account: "Czech-Mates" - The Czech Air Force, ICAO code CEF, is the air force branch of the Armed Forces of the Czech Republic. The Air Force, with the Ground Forces, comprises the main combat power of the Armed Forces of the Czech Republic. From 1946-1988, Czechoslovakia was member of the Eastern Bloc, allied with the Soviet Union, and from 1955 a member of the Warsaw Pact. Because of this, the Czechoslovak Air Force used Soviet aircraft, doctrines and tactics. The types of aircraft were mostly MiGs.

The Czech Air Force was still under the influence of the past in the 1990s. It was equipped mainly with older Russian aircraft. However as the Czech Republic prepared to become a member of NATO in 1999, it began to revise and update its doctrines and aircraft. The Czech government decided to buy a flight of Swedish JAS 39 Gripen multi-role fighter aircraft capable of reaching supersonic speeds. However Swedish journalists discovered in 2003 that bribery and corruption had probably taken place during the aircraft selection procedure.