MiG-21F-13 0620

The above accident occurred on 25 May 1979. At that time I was finishing my studies at the Military University in Košice. Part of the preparation at the school was also flight training. After about 150 hours on the L-29 in Košice (one platoon also flew the L-39 in Piestany), in the autumn of 1978 we started training on the MiG-21U (one platoon on the MiG-21UM) and on the MiG-21F at the 1st Air Training Regiment in Přerov. However, due to bad weather, we completed only a few sorties in two-seat 21s. We returned to Přerov after the final examinations in mid-April 1979. I took off for the above-mentioned flight at about 4 p.m. on 25 May, and my task was the technique of piloting in the area at high altitude according to the 5/5 exercise. Normally this flight lasted about 35 minutes, but for me it ended up stretching to an hour and twenty minutes. It was my 27th flight overall in the MiG and my 6th solo. After completing the task in the work area south of Kroměříž, I assigned myself to the left runway 250 (over the city). After extending the landing gear before the third turn, I discovered that the green signal light on my right landing gear leg had gone out. I did the ordered chassis board bulb check, they were fine, hydraulic pressure as well. I assessed the situation as a fault with the right gear leg limit switch and reported the situation to the controller. He ordered me to fly over the runway to check the landing gear extension. I made the pass as ordered at an altitude of about 50 metres. To my great surprise, the controller ordered another pass. After the repeat pass, he informed me that the left landing gear leg was not extended and I had to repeat the landing gear extension and retraction. After a further pass, he informed me to retract the landing gear, emergency extend the front landing gear leg and land without the main gear on the reserve grass strip next to the concrete runway. To do this, I was to perform one practice approach without landing gear. However, by that time the hazardous fuel residue emergency board was flashing (it was lit below 550 litres). The approach without landing gear required approaching at a shallower angle due to the increased drag without the main gear. The practice was quite successful even though the approach speed was higher(should have been about 270 km/h) so I asked the approach controller at about 100 meters to clear the landing. But he didn't answer me, so I repeated the circuit from the flare point. The aircraft was gaining altitude rapidly after throttle was added (it was practically out of fuel), but I guess the controller didn't count on that because I almost collided with a helicopter which he cleared to cross the runway. I had about 100 litres of fuel left for my last attempt to land, in case of failure it meant ejection over the airfield. Understandably I was getting nervous, and the last approach was worse. The airspeed wouldn't drop below 300 km/h, even though I had the braking shields extended and the engine speed at the minimum allowed to prevent the exhaust nozzle from blowing off. The flare was done at the correct altitude, I was trying to brake the airplane in stall. But without fuel and landing gear, it floated up to half the length of the grass strip. The aircraft's first contact with the terrain was in the area of the rear wing area, but this caused the aircraft to get a pulse on the front landing gear leg. This resulted in a first bounce, followed by a second higher bounce and a third higher bounce. According to my friends, the third bounce was more than ten metres high. During the bounces, I tried to deploy the braking chute, but failed to reach the button on the top of the dashboard (later the buttons were relocated next to the throttle lever). To this day, I still don't know how I managed to get the airplane to level after the third bounce, as it went straight down on its nose after the third bounce. After hitting the ground it stopped within a few meters. I was relieved to find that the overhead cover opened without any problems, but then smoke started coming out from under the cabin. I hurriedly left the cabin and waited for the arrival of firefighters and paramedics. Unfortunately, I injured my spine during this rodeo, but fortunately, after about half a year, the doctors got me back together. But the plane was worse. First it was decided that it would be cancelled. It had damage to the front and rear lower fuselage, a broken front landing gear leg and a pitot tube. Indeed, upon retrieval, it was confirmed that only the limit switch was defective and I was able to land normally. However, within a few days there was a collision at our school regiment between my classmate Zden Bielik and the flying teacher, Capt. Pohnán, so it was finally decided that my MiG-21F fuselage number 0620 would be repaired. It was indeed repaired, but whether it flew, I don't know, rather they think it didn't. I recently saw it photographed on the intrnet in the mid-eighties at Košice airport, where it was used to teach graduates of the VKVŚ Košice Technique. Supposedly it was cancelled in the late eighties in Prešov. However, it is a mystery to me how it came to be on the memorial at the PVO military training area in Jamolice, where I spotted it in 1994. When I wanted to look at it again in the spring of 1995, it was already gone, supposedly having ended up in the scrap yard after the Jamolice training area was closed down. That's about the time I crashed my MiG-21.

Snímky opraveného letounu MiG-21F trupového čísla 0620 jsem našel na modelářském česko-slovenském internetovém serveru Modelmág.

Side view.

Lifting on inflatable bags