ISLAMABAD: India’s defence official, Captain Shiv Kumar, has publicly acknowledged the loss of several aircraft during the May 7 air clash with Pakistan, marking the first admission by the Indian Air Force (IAF) about the destruction of its fighter jets.
The admission was made while speaking at a seminar titled ‘Analysis of the Pakistan–India Air Battle and Indonesia’s Anticipatory Strategies from the Perspective of Air Power,’ organized by Universitas Dirgantara Marsekal Suryadarma in Indonesia.
Kumar attributed the aircraft losses to political constraints imposed by the Indian leadership, which had ordered that Indian jets not target military assets in Pakistan. This, according to Kumar, was to avoid escalating the conflict into a full-blown war.
Despite the admission of jet losses, the exact number remains unspecified. This follows earlier statements from India’s Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, who confirmed fighter jet losses during the 86-hour war with Pakistan but refrained from offering precise numbers.
In an interview with Bloomberg Television during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, General Chauhan acknowledged the losses but minimized the importance of numbers. He remarked, “What is important is not the jet being down, but why they were being down,” indicating that the circumstances surrounding the losses were more significant than the number of aircraft lost.
While India has acknowledged its losses, Pakistan maintains that it shot down at least six Indian jets, including three Rafale fighter jets. This claim has been a point of contention, with India consistently downplaying the numbers provided by Pakistan.
On May 30, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy admitted that Pakistan downed five Indian jets, including Rafale aircraft, highlighting the ongoing discrepancies in official reports between both nations.
The air clashes, which occurred amid rising tensions between Pakistan and India, have had strategic implications for both nations’ military capabilities.
