Behind the curtains:
Abhijit Gadgil’s Story
In 2001, Gadgil was in his sixth year with the Air Force, and had been flying MiG-21s for four of those. In a note his family put together about him, they say:
It would not be wrong to state that he was actually in love with that aircraft. He would sing its praises and boast about his achievements in the operational theatre.
Gadgil earned his MiG-21 wings in Assam. But he wanted above all to be part of a squadron on the border, in the west. In 1998, he got his wish. He was posted to Suratgarh, Rajasthan. He seemed immensely happy there, flying a lot and participating "in every squadron activity ... he enjoyed the sand, his squadron and the company of his comrades-in-arms."
Until September 17, 2001. At about eight that night, Gadgil's MiG sped down the runway and took off into a moonless sky. 33 seconds later, it tore nose-first into the ground. At 470 kmph, it dug a nine-foot hole in his beloved sand. Of course Gadgil died, leaving behind a shattered wife and family. He also became a part of one of the IAF's more peculiar set of statistics. It reads like this:
It mystifies me that anyone could look at these numbers and either dismiss them as not cause for alarm (which then-Defence Minister, the same George Fernandes who wrote to the Gadgil’s:
“These crashes are not just a couple of years [old]. The history of MiG crashes goes back to the early eighties. It is a problem that the nation has to take on and solve.
In precisely that spirit, the Gadgil family formed the Abhijit Air Safety Foundation in 2002 that has been asking questions about his death and the safety of these aircraft. "The idea was to get authorities to act to stop the loss of young lives in the ancient aircraft of our Air Force in general, and MiG-21 in particular", says another note they wrote. It's what you'd expect of any family bereaved as they were: they have innumerable questions; they want answers; they want to be sure this never happens again, to any other pilot.
As an aside, something has changed for the better since AASF was founded. Whether through its efforts or otherwise, the number of MiG crashes decreased markedly in 2003.
Yet the questions remain, fueled also by how they have been received. In the IAF's only response to the Gadgil’s' several letters -- the ONLY response to date -- one Air Marshal Ashok Goel, Inspector General at the Air HQ, wrote to them in March 2003:
We have taken effort [sic] to explain to you the reasons leading to the accident. The [aircraft] was fully serviceable at the time of crash. We ... are quite convinced that the accident was due to disorientation during a dark night take off. [Abhijit's] records do indicate that he was weak in certain aspects of flying ... with experience he managed to cope.  A venomous attack on the Air Force or its hierarchy does not, in my opinion, offer any solace. At worst, you may demoralize the Service. Such an act would not be in the best interest of the Nation ... It would be most unfortunate if your intentions are to disrespect the IAF. ... So far we have turned a blind eye to your tirade in publicAre you as outraged as I was that this Goel would actually write in this vein to the family of one of the IAF's dead pilots? That he issues cloaked warnings about "demoralizing the Service", "disrespecting the IAF" and, worst, harming "the best interest of the Nation"? Is Goel actually saying that the Gadgil’s' patriotic responsibility is to stop asking their questions?
So ask some final questions yourself: if Abhijit Gadgil was really "weak in certain aspects", why was he asked to fly that night? Why was he allowed to fly at all?
Or is there a simpler explanation: that Air Marshal Goel decided to use this excuse after the fact? That it is easier to fault a now dead pilot than admit to, and correct problems with a fleet of fighters? Is this another line of questions that leads to cynicism?
There's a larger lesson here. Our armed forces are intimately part of what we call patriotism: witness the Air Marshal's reference to the national interest.  Yet scratch just a bit, and this supposed patriotism bites back
The mother of an Indian fighter pilot killed in a crash two years ago has begun a campaign against the use of Russian-made MiGs by the Indian air force. Kavita Gadgil's 27-year-old son, Abhijit, was flying a MiG-21 fighter aircraft when it went down in the Indian state of Rajasthan.  More than one 150 Indian fighter planes have crashed in the past 10 years.  Experts blame a lack of training facilities and poor maintenance for the crashes.
She has formed a group of people who seek what she calls a "rational explanation" for the continuing MiG crashes.
The Abhijit Air Safety Foundation was formed on 21 December 2002, an anniversary of the day her son was commissioned into the Indian air force.
More than 100 people, including doctors and engineers have already joined the group. "We will be creating pressure groups and we want the government to make public the results of all the MiG crash inquiries."
"My son's death is just a statistic now as so many fighter pilots have gone down after his death," she said.  "The real cause of the accidents is not being revealed."
Her elder son, Kedar Gadgil, said they were prepared to approach the courts and file a case against the flying of MiGs.  The Gadgil family alleges there is something wrong with the aircraft, but the government is not even willing to publicly announce the results of crash inquiries.  "India has lost so many talented and young pilots already in these crashes," Ms Kavita Gadgil said.  But Indian defense officials say human error rather than technical fault is one of the major reasons for crashes.  The air force says it is taking necessary measures to reduce the number of accidents.