9 Pak aircraft were destroyed in Op Sindoor: Sources
New Delhi: Six Pakistan Air Force (PAF) fighter jets, two high-value surveillance aircraft, over ten armed drones, and a C-130 Hercules transport aircraft were destroyed in Operation Sindoor, India's retaliatory military action following the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. According to sources, a post-conflict assessment of the military engagement in early May has revealed heavy damage to Pakistani aerial and ground military assets.
The six PAF fighter jets were downed during aerial operations. These aircraft were engaged and destroyed in air-to-air combat as part of the retaliatory response by Indian air defence units. The engagements occurred within Pakistani Punjab and parts of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK).
The downing of these jets, according to sources, was confirmed via radar tracking and thermal signatures captured by Indian ground-based missile systems and airborne early warning assets. The Pakistani aircraft vanished from tracking grids after impact confirmations, the sources said.
One of the key hits during the four-day engagement was the destruction of a high-value airborne surveillance platform. According to sources, the target was either an electronic countermeasure (ECM) platform or an Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft, neutralised at an estimated range of 300 kilometres using India's long-range strike asset, the Sudarshan.
Another AEW&C aircraft of Swedish origin, reportedly stationed at Pakistan's Bholari airbase, was destroyed during a subsequent air-to-surface cruise missile strike. Satellite imagery showed the complete destruction of the hangar housing the aircraft.
In a separate operation, a PAF C-130 Hercules was destroyed during a targeted drone strike over Pakistani Punjab. The C-130 was being used for logistical support and was parked at a forward operating base near Multan when the drone strike occurred, sources said.
The IAF also undertook precision strikes against unmanned systems. During an operation involving Rafale and Su-30 jets, a hangar housing multiple Chinese-origin Wing Loong series medium-altitude, long-endurance drones was destroyed. According to sources, over ten UCAVs were destroyed in this single strike.
Additionally, Indian air defence units intercepted and downed several Pakistani UCAVs over Indian airspace during the conflict, particularly over sectors in Jammu and Kashmir and Rajasthan.
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