THE BATTLE FOR AIR SUPERIORITY

The four-day India-Pakistan conflict showcased modern aerial combat in all its dimensions. The Rafale vs J-10C face-off remains inconclusive, but India's multi-layered air defence system was a clear winner

- By PRADIP R. SAGAR

AS THE DUST SETTLES OVER THE INDIA-PAKISTAN CONFLICT—TRIGGERED BY INDIA’S MISSILE STRIKES on nine terrorist hubs in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Punjab province in response to the Islamabad-sponsored terrorist attack in Pahalgam in April—it is time for a reckoning of how the two adversaries fared. Uniquely, over four intense, dramatic days (May 7-10), the theatre of war was the skies on either side of the Line of Control (LoC) and the international border. Airpower was the key factor, manifested not in the dogfights of yore, but their modern equivalent, comprising precise strikes, electronic warfare and smart coordination between aircraft, ground radars and airborne early warning and control system (AEW&CS)/ Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft. Drones and missiles were used aplenty by Pakistan, and India's multi-layered air defence (AD) system rose to the occasion like never before. According to the Indian Army, its air defence units neutralised nearly 800-900 Pakistani drones during Operation Sindoor.