Farewell to the MiG-25 Foxbats

The Phasing out ceremony of the MiG-25R Foxbat "Garuda" was held on May 1st, 2006 at Air Force Station Bareilly. No.35 Squadron, which operates the MiG-25 undertook a simple ceremony which was presided by the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal S.P.Tyagi.

The ceremony showcased a flypast by a MiG-25 flown by Wg Cdr Sanjiv Talyan. The aircraft landed and taxied to the apron in front of the dias, where Wg Cdr Talyan got down, marched upto the CAS in his flight suit and handed over the Form 700 of the sortie to him, signifying the last operational sortie in the IAF.

Two MiG-25s were on display at this ceremony, one which was used in the flypast, the other which was towed in front of the audience and later parked near the hangar. Various items related to the Foxbat, like its massive Tumansky engine and jet nozzle, its Photo-Recce Cameras as well as some of its older photographs were on display. 

Several former COs of No.102 Squadron attended the function. The IAF has four flyable MiG-25s which will be flown to various destinations around India for preservation. There are another two airframes which will also be put up for preservation at a later date.