Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh on Friday revealed that India shot down high-tech Pakistani fighters, including the F-16 and J-17 jets. He also dismissed Pakistan’s claims of shooting down Indian fighter jets during Operation Sindoor in May as “manohar kahaniya” (interesting stories), and asked the country to prove its claims.
During his annual press conference on the 93rd Air Force Day celebrations, when asked about Pakistan’s claims, Air Marshal Singh said India struck a large number of their airfields and military installations, and destroyed at least five high-tech fighters, including US-made F-16s and Chinese-made J-17s – along with a AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Control) – during the four days of cross-border confrontations.