India’s military has for the first time confirmed losing an unspecified number of fighter jets during clashes with Pakistan inMay but asserted that the four-day conflict never escalated to the brink of nuclear war.
“What is important is that, not the jet being down, but why they were being down,” said Chief of Defense Staff of the Indian Armed Forces Anil Chauhan in a TV interview on Saturday during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.
He dismissed Pakistan’s claim of shooting down six Indian warplanes as “absolutely incorrect,” though he declined to reveal the exact number lost.
“Why they were down, what mistakes were made — those are important. Numbers are not important,” Chauhan added.
“The good part is that we are able to understand the tactical mistake which we made, remedy it, rectify it, and then implement it again after two days and flew all our jets again, targeting at long range,” he said.
This marks the most direct admission yet by an Indian official regarding aircraft losses in the May 7 conflict.
The clashes—the worst between the nuclear-armed neighbors in 50 years—involved air strikes, drone attacks, missile exchanges, and artillery fire along the border. Tensions flared after a deadly April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, where gunmen killed 26 civilians. India blamed Pakistan, which denied involvement.
Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif earlier claimed six Indian jets were downed, a claim unverified independently. India had previously remained silent on aircraft losses.