Indian Air Force lost 15 fighter jets since 2016
- By Web Desk -
- Jun 27, 2019
Radio Pakistan reported that Indian Air Force (IAF) lost 20 aircraft, including 15 fighter jets and helicopters in crashes since 2016.
Indian Minister of State for Defence, Shripad Naik in a written reply in Lok Sabha said that the quantum of provisional losses in 11 cases of crashes was approximately INR 525 crore.
He said in 2016-17, six Indian Air Force fighter jets, two helicopters, one transport aircraft and one trainer crashed, while in 2017-18, the air force lost two fighter jets and one trainer aircraft in crashes.
The number rose sharply in 2018-19 with the Indian Air Force losing seven fighter jets, two helicopters and two trainers.
It is worth mentioning that Pakistan Air Force shot down two fighter jets of Indian Air Force in broad daylight on February 27 over violation of the Line of Control (LoC), besides arresting one of its pilots Abhinandan Varthaman, who was later handed over to Indian officials at Wahga Border as a gesture of peace from Pakistan.
According to Pakistan’s military media wing, one IAF jet crashed inside Azad and Jammu Kashmir region while other in India occupied Kashmir during the dogfight of Feb 27.