News July 16, 2009

Antony confirms StratPost reports on MiG-29 tail defect

The Indian Defense Minister AK Antony has confirmed the presence of structural problems in the MiG-29 to the Rajya Sabha, something StratPost had first reported in February after confirming the grounding of the aircraft by the Russian Air Force.

T he Indian Defense Minister AK Antony has confirmed the presence of structural problems in the MiG-29 to the Rajya Sabha.

“There was a MiG 29 accident in Russia in December 2008. RAC (Russian Aircraft Corporation) MiG has intimated that corrosion on the fin root ribs has been identified as the cause of the crack development,” Antony said, adding that there was no plan to decommission the aircraft from IAF.

“A repair scheme and preventive measures are in place and IAF has not encountered major problems concerning the issue,” Antony said.

StratPost had first reported the grounding of the aircraft by the Russian Air Force for these reasons in February, after which the Indian Air Force (IAF) had conducted tests on the IAF MiG-29 fleet.

The IAF has been understandably concerned at the faults in the aircraft.

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About Saurabh Joshi

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Follow Saurabh Joshi on Twitter @ http://www.twitter.com/saurabhjoshi Saurabh is a journalist based in New Delhi, India who has worked in print, television as well as internet news media. Besides defense and strategy, his past assignments have included reporting from Kashmir, coverage of terror strikes as well as election coverage from all over India. He has a Bachelors degree in Journalism (Honors) as well as a law degree (LLB), both from the University of Delhi.
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