The Indian Air Force Chief claimed that the Indian Air Force destroyed six Pakistani aircraft in May, while the Pakistani Defense Minister alleged that Indian leaders are using senior military officials as a face for their strategic failures.
(SNPNEWS.IN Update): Indian Air Force Chief, Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, claimed during the Air Chief Marshal L.M. Katre Memorial Lecture in Bengaluru on August 9, 2025, that in May 2025, during “Operation Sindoor,” India destroyed six Pakistani aircraft. These included five fighter jets and one large surveillance aircraft, likely an AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System).
The success of this operation was attributed to the Russian-origin S-400 air defense system, which targeted the Pakistani aircraft from a distance of 300 kilometers. This operation was conducted in response to a terrorist attack in Pehalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22, 2025, which killed 26 innocent civilians.
On May 6-7, 2025, India carried out strikes on nine terrorist targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, resulting in the deaths of over 100 terrorists.
Satellite imagery and local media reports confirmed damage to Pakistan’s airbases and terrorist infrastructure, including the Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters in Bahawalpur.
Pakistan’s Defense Minister, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, on August 9, 2025, dismissed Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh’s claims, calling the assertion of destroying six Pakistani aircraft during “Operation Sindoor” “unbelievable” and “ill-timed.” Asif stated that India had not made such claims for three months, while Pakistan provided a detailed technical briefing to international media immediately after the incident.
He claimed that Pakistan had destroyed six Indian aircraft, including three Rafale jets, S-400 air defense systems, and drones, while asserting that no Pakistani aircraft were damaged.
Asif suggested that both countries should open their aircraft inventories for independent verification, which he claimed would reveal the truth. He warned that any violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty would be met with an “immediate, firm, and proportionate” response, as demonstrated in “Operation Bunyanum Marsous.” He further alleged that Indian leaders were using senior military officials as a face for their strategic failures.
Asif had previously claimed on May 7, 2025, in an interview with Bloomberg Television that Pakistan had downed five Indian aircraft. However, India’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, dismissed these claims, stating that the focus should not be on whether aircraft were downed but on why it happened. India refined its strategy and successfully targeted its objectives.
Foreign media, such as “The Washington Post”, also confirmed, based on satellite imagery, that Indian strikes damaged six Pakistani airbases, marking it as the largest attack in decades of conflict in South Asia.