Romania suspends use of Soviet-era fighter jets

Romania is withdrawing   all flights of Soviet-era MiG-21 LanceR fighter jets following a couple of problems and a death dealing crash previous month,  said the defense ministry on Friday.

The statement  came day after the Romanian military claimed  that a MiG-21 jet facing couple of issues with its landing gear.

“The measure was taken because of the considerable number of accidents  and aviation accidents reported while using the MiG-21 LanceR,” said the ministry .

On March 2, a MiG-21 disappeared from the radar while on patrol near the Black Sea. It was later found crashed with the pilot killed.

An IAR 330-Puma helicopter searching for the jet crashed in bad weather, killing all seven crew on board.

A “combination of human and environmental factors” caused the crashes, the defense ministry said in a preliminary investigation.

The precise number of MiG-21 fighter jets is confidential. Unofficial estimates put the number at around 25 in Romania today. During the communist regime, the country had around 400 MiG-21s.

Friday’s announcement leaves the NATO member dependent on a squadron of F-16 jets bought recently from Portugal and on allied air policing missions.

NATO strengthened its eastern flank followed by  Russian  invasion in Ukraine, which included sending troop reinforcements and equipment to Romania, that  shares a border with Ukraine.

Bucharest also says that it has “accelerated” possible tries to buy another 32 F-16 jets from Norway, adding two more squadrons for the  country’s air force.