After J-10C, JF-17 Thunder “Destroys” India’s Prized S-400 System, Pakistan Claims; India Junks Baseless Reports

By
Sakshi Tiwari
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After claims that it shot down multiple Indian fighter jets, including the Dassault Rafale, Pakistan has now claimed to have destroyed India’s Russian-origin S-400 Triumf air defense system. 

India and Pakistan reached a ceasefire on May 10, which came into effect at 1700 hours IST. The ceasefire was reached over 12 hours after Pakistan launched a massive offensive, the “Operation Bunyan-un-Marsoos,” against India as retaliation for Operation Sindoor launched by India against terror camps inside Pakistan.

Despite the ceasefire, an Indian government source said that Pakistan had violated a ceasefire agreed just hours earlier. Massive attacks are underway across Jammu and Kashmir and other areas.

Separately, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah posted on X: “What the hell just happened to the ceasefire? Explosions heard across Srinagar!!!”

Pakistan’s Big Claims

Amid its “retaliatory” attacks on India earlier today, Pakistan made some astonishing claims without providing any evidence.

It claimed that an Indian S-400 air defense system at Adampur, Punjab, was destroyed—a claim categorically refuted by India.

The reports in Pakistani media stated the Russian-origin system was destroyed by a hypersonic missile launched by the PAF JF-17 fighter jet.

The claim was almost immediately amplified by Chinese state-owned media, the Global Times. China and Pakistan jointly developed the JF-17 aircraft.

A video footage was later published on social media showing a JF-17 equipped with what was believed to be a  CM-400AKG missile. The sighting of the aircraft, however, does not confirm a successful strike. Moreover, the veracity of the video could not be independently established.

The S-400, obtained from Russia, was used to shoot down drones and missiles launched by Pakistan on multiple Indian cities on May 8-9, along with L-70 guns, Zu-23mm systems, Schilka systems, specialised counter-unmanned aerial systems (UAS), and shoulder-mounted air defense guns.

Indian citizens have lauded the system on social media, and some have called it New Delhi’s greatest defense purchase.

Pakistan on May 10 also claimed hitting the BrahMos Storage site in Nagrota, Artillery gun positions, as well as bases in Sirsa and Suratgarh. All claims were junked by New Delhi.

Earlier, Pakistan claimed to have downed at least five Indian Air Force fighter jets, including three Rafales, using the “deadly” combination of Chinese-origin J-10C and the long-range PL-15E missile. These claims, much like the latest ones, were made without any evidence. The other fighters it claimed downed were the MiG-29 and the Su-30MKI.

India has not responded to these claims yet.

As per Pakistan, both the high-value targets in India were obliterated using Chinese-origin platforms. Since the claims have been rejected by India, they appear to be part of a propaganda campaign to please the domestic audience.

After the ceasefire was announced by both sides, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi from the Indian Army said, “Pakistan claimed that it damaged our S400 and Brahmos missile base with its JF 17, which is completely wrong. Secondly, it also ran a misinformation campaign that our airfields in Sirsa, Jammu, Pathankot, Bhatinda, Nalia, and Bhuj were damaged, and its misinformation is also completely wrong. Thirdly, according to Pakistan’s misinformation campaign, our ammunition depot in Chandigarh and Vyas was damaged, which is also completely wrong. Pakistan made false allegations that the Indian Army damaged mosques.”

S-400 Used By India 

India’s Russian-built S-400 air defense system is the most advanced in its arsenal. Anointed Sudarshan Chakra, the system is known for its precision, speed, and lethality. India acquired the system from Russia after the brief but high-stakes air duel with Pakistan in February 2019, following India’s Balakot Strikes.

India and Russia signed a US$5.43 billion deal in 2018 for five S-400 Triumf air defense system regiments. India received its first S-400 squadron in December 2021 and has since received two more squadrons. The remaining two squadrons will likely be delivered by the end of 2025 or in the first quarter of 2026. 

Developed by Russia’s Almaz-Antey corporation, the S-400 is a mobile surface-to-air missile system designed to detect, track, and destroy various aerial targets, including fighter jets, cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and drones.

File: S-400 AD System

The system offers layered air defense with a detection range of 600 kilometres and an engagement range of 40-400 kilometres. It can track about 100 targets at once. Thus, the S-400 gives India a deep-strike interception capability when deployed close to the Line of Control (LoC) or the international border between India and Pakistan.

It uses four different missiles: the 40N6, which has a 400 km range for high-altitude targets like aircraft; the 48N6E3, which has a 250 km range for targets like aircraft and cruise missiles; the 9M96E2, which has a 120 km engagement range for high maneuverability targets; and the 9M96E, which has a 40 km engagement range. India has reportedly purchased all four types of missiles included in the S-400 system.

The system can track 100 targets simultaneously and engage 36 of them simultaneously. It sends two missiles after one target and integrates with the Akash (30-70 kilometers range), Barak-8 (70-100 kilometers range), SPYDER (15-35 kilometers range), and QRSAM (25-30 kilometers range) air defense systems, thus providing layered coverage against aerial threats.

The S-400 is a development of the S-75 missile that famously shot down the American U-2 spy plane over Russia in 1960. Russia has dubbed the S-400 an effective counter-stealth weapon, which could even make it difficult for American F-35 fifth-generation stealth fighters to operate.

 

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