According to New Delhi Television Limited Indian Air Force is planning to equip its frontline Sukhoi-30 fighters jet with Israeli Derby air-to-air missiles after the Russian-made R-77 missiles were found wanting in air combat operations over the Line of Control on February 27 this year.
Retaliating to the IAF strike in Balakot on February 26, the Pakistan Air Force aggressively positioned a large formation of 24 fighters near the Line of Control (LoC). A handful of these jets managed to cross the LoC to fire precision-guided glide bombs towards Indian military positions in the Rajouri sector.
Eight Indian Air Force fighters, including two Sukhoi-30 MKI jets, were vectored to intercept the Pakistani formation when they detected the launch of several US-made AIM-120 C5 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) in their direction.
”The PAF surprised the IAF by launching air-to-air missiles from inside Pakistan-occupied Kashmir,” says Sameer Joshi, a Kargil veteran. ”The AMRAAM effectively outranged the IAF air-to-air missiles which did not get a command to launch,” he said.
Among the Indian Air Force’s fighters which were targeted were two Sukhoi-30s which managed to evade the AMRAAMs which were fired at close to their maximum range of 100 kilometres.
Fully defensive and desperate to escape the incoming AMRAAMs, the IAF Sukhoi-30s escaped being shot down but were unable to retaliate the F-16s because they were out of position and their own missiles, the Russian R-77s, did not have the range to realistically engage the Pakistani fighters.
IAF sources told NDTV that the Russian missiles do not match its advertised range and cannot engage targets which are more than 80 kilometres away.
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To meet its requirements, the IAF is looking at the I-Derby variant of the Israeli missile which was unveiled at the Paris Air Show in 2015.
Integrating the missile into the Russian fighter will be a challenge and, according to sources, will require Israeli expertise, particularly in developing a data-link between the Sukhoi-30 and the missile, once it is fired.
A fighter jet communicates with the missile through the data link and passes on updated vectors (location) of the fighter which has been targeted.
The Derby is also a component of the IAF’s SPYDER surface-to-air missile batteries, and are considered several generations ahead of the legacy Russian systems which it has replaced.
Sources in the Indian Air Force told NDTV, “We already have the missile as part of the SPYDER (Surface-to-Air Missile) system. Integration (with the IAF’s Su-30s) is the next step.”
The I-Derby isn’t the only missile the air force is looking at to modernise its Sukhoi-30 fleet. The European MBDA manufactured Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile (ASRAAM), the first of which were acquired for the air force’s Jaguar fleet in 2014 as part of a 250 million pound deal, has been tested in wind tunnels on models of the Su-30 by the National Aerospace Laboratories in Bengaluru.
on 26 February 2019 India Airforce conducted a Balakot airstrike. Indian warplanes crossed the de facto border in the disputed region of Kashmir and dropped bombs in the vicinity of the town of Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan.
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On February 27, 2019, Pakistan Airforce conducted Operation Swift Retort as a Retaliatory action in response to Indian Airforce Balakot Airstrike
The following day, on February 27 Pakistan Airforce retaliated and conducted Operation Swift Retort causing an Indian warplane to be shot down and it’s pilot to be taken prisoner by the Pakistan military before being returned on March 1.
Pakistan claims that on February 27 PAF shot down two Indian Airforce fighter jets (1 MiG-21 and Su-30MKI). Squadron Leader Hassan Siddiqui Shot down Indian Air Force MiG-21 bison piloted by wing-commander Abhinandan Varthaman and Wing Commander Nauman Ali Khan shot down Indian Air Force SU-30MKI
Wing commander Abhinandan shoot down Pakistani F-16. Please rectify your report. IAF has shown all the proofs of Shooting down Pakistani F-16. Plz stop doing biased reporting.
In the aviation expert seminar based in Chandigarh, the India invited their most famous expert Christiana from USA to talk about the 27feb episode and shooting of F16, WHERE she cleared all indan doubts by dismissing the fake claim of India.
Even she told to the gathering and in front of then air chief dunao, that the missile part fell on the Indian side was from F16 and it was shooted towards SU30 and after shooting down the Indian fighter plane, a rescue mission was launched through MI 17 helicopter, which was latter shoot down by the own Indian airforce with total 6crew members on board.
Apart from that she told in front of your air chief that F16 which Pakistan is in operation don’t have GE engines and India is showing the part of that engine which is actually fake and were taken from some other country..
By the way, she is Indian loving person and purely biased towards Pakistan.. But truth always prevails and falsehood perishes..
Same happen that day and she categorically rejected indian claim and gave logical and real aviation expert Theories to put down Indian claims..
You need to go through that lecture and watch it properly..
Outdated F16 bought from Jordan by Pakistan
We do not need a certificate from anyone else. We trust our INDIAN ARMY. We are proud of our INDIAN ARMY
We do not need any certificate from people who sit in AC rooms and give biased lectures or do biased reporting. We are proud of our INDIAN ARMY. We trust our INDIAN ARMY
It is already proven through the pictures and tail number that shot down F16 is procured through third county that acquired it from US customer.
Indian version is Stronger with Evidence in Pics a Pak military officer next to crashed flight with clear tail number visible. That pic is no more visible only anymore.
People who weren’t on the story during that day missed the Pic
Assumption based on No GE engine failed as it is not the F16 Pak got from US Directly.
No incident of another crashed site was reported in any local media.
Please reverse the Assumptions.
Frivolous claim. No F-16 was downed as subsequent American checked the inventory and verified the number of F16 to be intact. Yes Abhinandan was downed and offered a nice cup of tea by Pak Army and subsequently released at American intervention. Dont spread false information as does your Godi Media.
More than fighter planes, I think the people need food first.
Like the heading says (outranged and outgunned by the Pakistan Air force) the world has facts that there were no shoot down of a Pak F16 and UK experts have been to the site and have verified this along with the Americans. So please get your mind out of cookoo la la land as India Air force got there ass ripped and got them a new asshole.
Do you think Pak airforce would let your airforce get away with it, no chance.
Though you’re government gets its order from isreal and American we pakistani have shown to you and your dog bitch friends not to fuck with Pak airforce and its army. Pakistan 2 kills India 0 and are still 0…..
Cont..
I wish I could have saved those Pics.
The Tail number was tracked by avation enthusiast at that time revealing the Third country.
Pakistan seems to have procured used F16s not from US.
US later declared no F16 were lost. The fact is No F16 Pak got from US were Lost which is True.
Don’t need Experts to gather this info.
Experts missed 3rd country procured F16
(US wouldn’t see F16 which Pak tried to buy so badly may be leading the getting used F16s from third party.
The US firm manufacturing F 16s maintain a logistic system accounting for all F 16s all around the globe; inclusive of 3rd country deals. This is because each country procures spares from the OEM and not from Jordan. Their logistics system updates all records of spares/service against the tail no. The OEM maintains the automatic account of their each aircraft and thus confirmed that PAF’s inventory of F16 was intact.
The IAF claim infact is a face saving stunt for domestic consumption only.
We don’t need lectures from people who sit in air conditioned rooms and give biased lectures or do biased reporting.
We trust our INDIAN ARMY. We are proud of our INDIAN ARMY.
Mayank….just being proud is not enough. Pride comes before a fall. We Indians need to be smart. We have too much junk russian weaponry.
Keep on doing proud of on your Army. What a coward it is. After loosing a big territory from China they are keeping on saying that we didn’t lost. This was a r surrendered by an Army. This army give you many such surprise ahead. Wait.
Your army did not took the dead bodies of their own soldiers in Kargil War. Really surprising.