MiG-21MF LanceR C - Romania -2012
Romanian Air Force - RoAF

After the fall of the Iron Curtain, several Eastern European countries were facing difficulties being supplied with spare parts and engines for their Soviet made aircraft fleet, in some cases even with significantly higher prices. One such case was Romania, which had a particularly cold relationship with the USSR. This forced the Romanian Air Forces to retire prematurely the MiG-23s and MiG-29s. The MiG-29s were barely received in december 1989.

Instead, it was decided in 1993 to upgrade 110 MiG-21M and MFs to western standards. The program provided a total inventory of 73 MiG 21 Lancer A single-seat ground attack variants, 23 Lancer C single-seat air superiority jets and 14 Lancer B two-seat training and ground-attack versions.

Currently, between 25 ad 30 MiG-21 LanceR are still operational, with parts of the fleet being already replaced since 2016 with F-16s. The MiG-21 Lancer will be completely retired in the coming few years, after which Romania won't have any Soviet made aicraft any more.