Air Chief Marshal AP Singh stated on Friday that during Operation Sindoor in May, the Indian Air Force (IAF) downed 12 to 13 Pakistani aircraft, including US-made F-16s and Chinese-origin JF-17s. This marks the first time a top military leader has revealed that the number of Pakistani jets destroyed by India during the operation exceeded single digits.
Speaking at his annual press conference ahead of the 93rd IAF Day on October 8th, Air Chief Marshal Singh said there were indications that India destroyed 6 to 7 aircraft in ground strikes on Pakistani airfields and another six in the air. He also dismissed claims from Islamabad that they had shot down Indian jets, calling them "fanciful tales" intended for a domestic audience.
Operation Sindoor was launched on May 7th in response to the April 22nd Pahalgam terror attack. During the operation, the IAF targeted numerous Pakistani airfields and installations. According to intelligence reports, these strikes resulted in the destruction of radar systems in at least four locations, command and control centers in two places, and damage to runways in two locations. Additionally, three hangars at different stations were damaged.
Air Chief Marshal Singh asserted the IAF's capability to accurately target emerging terror hubs in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) region, where groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) have been relocating their bases. This relocation followed the Indian forces' bombing of nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) on May 7th, which resulted in the deaths of at least 100 terrorists.
Air Chief Marshal Singh rebuffed Pakistan's claims of downing Indian jets, dismissing them as "manohar kahaniyan" (fanciful tales) being used as a face-saving measure. He stated that if Pakistan believes they shot down 15 Indian jets, they are welcome to think so, and should then account for 15 fewer aircraft in the Indian inventory when planning for future conflicts.
Air Chief Marshal Singh also highlighted the destruction of a long-range strike, approximately 300 km in range, which potentially targeted an AEW&C aircraft or a signal intelligence aircraft, along with five high-tech fighters of the F-16 and JF-17 class. He said that the IAF took out 4-5 fighter jets of F-16 and JF-17 class and one surveillance aircraft in the air. He also specified that the IAF raids destroyed four enemy radar sites, two command and control centres, two runways, three hangers, a large C-130J class aircraft and 4-5 fighter aircraft on ground.
The IAF chief's statements came after Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif claimed at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) that seven Indian fighter jets were downed. Air Chief Marshal Singh's remarks underscored Pakistan's failure to provide any evidence to support these claims.
