New Delhi: After the success of Operation Safed Sagar, the makers of the series are returning with a new Netflix documentary, The Last Salute, honouring the MiG-21’s 62-year legacy with the Indian Air Force (IAF).
Operation Safed Sagar ranked No. 2 on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English TV list and marked the first time the aircraft was filmed after its retirement.
Directed by Kushal Srivastava, the documentary will feature Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, alongside pilots who flew the MiG-21 during its six decades of service with the IAF.
From Soviet design to the Indian Air Force
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 was developed in the Soviet Union as a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft. At its peak, between 1966 and 1980, India procured 872 MiG aircraft across different models.
The jet served with more than 50 air forces, including those of the Soviet Union, China, India, Egypt, Iraq and Vietnam.
In the 1960s, state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) began manufacturing the aircraft under licence, making the MiG-21 a cornerstone of IAF squadrons.
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The people behind the aircraft
The documentary will focus on the MiG-21’s six-decade journey with the IAF. Beyond the aircraft’s technical history, it will also document the lives and experiences of the people who flew and maintained the jet.
The documentary is primarily filmed at Air Force Station Chandigarh, where the MiG-21 first arrived in India. It will revisit the aircraft’s contribution to the 1965 and 1971 wars, as well as its role in the 1999 Kargil War, looking beyond the fictional interpretation explored in Operation Safed Sagar.
Revisiting the 2019 aerial engagement
The documentary will also focus on the most recent chapter of the MiG-21’s service, revisiting the aftermath of the 2019 Balakot air strikes, when a MiG-21 Bison was involved in an aerial engagement with Pakistan.
The Netflix documentary will be released on August 26.
(Edited by Maryam Hassan)