Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21
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Role	        Fighter
Manufacturer	Mikoyan-Gurevich OKB
Designer	Artem Mikoyan
First flight	14 February 1955 (Ye-2)
Introduction	1959 (MiG-21F)
Retired	        1990s (Russia)
Status	        In active service (see list)
Primary users	Soviet Air Force
                Indian Air Force
                Polish Air Force
                East German Air Force
Produced	1959 (MiG-21F) to 1985 (MiG-21bis)
Number built	11,496
               (10,645 produced in the USSR, 194 in Czechoslovakia, 657 in India)
Variants	Chengdu J-7


The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (Russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet fighter aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. It was popularly nicknamed "balalaika", from the aircraft's planform-view resemblance to the Russian stringed musical instrument or ołówek (English: pencil) by Polish pilots due to the shape of its fuselage.

Early versions are considered second-generation jet fighters, while later versions are considered to be third-generation jet fighters. Some 50 countries over four continents have flown the MiG-21, and it still serves many nations a half-century after its maiden flight. The fighter made aviation records. At least by name, it is the most-produced supersonic jet aircraft in aviation history and the most-produced combat aircraft since the Korean War, and it had the longest production run of a combat aircraft (1959 to 1985 over all variants).