India and Pakistan are at it again…
Nuclear powers India and Pakistan are clashing again, and there are claims of aircraft kills from air battles that sound like a hodgepodge of foreign-made fighters.
Full article, HERE from Business Insider, and HERE from AV Web.
So, there are reports that more than 125 Indian and Pakistani fighter jets reportedly engaged in a dogfight lasting more than an hour in the early hours of Wednesday.
But interestingly, they are also saying that nobody actually crossed any border, but were firing missiles at each other at ranges of up to 100nm.
If verified, this would be the largest ‘dogfight’ since WWII…
Of course, all of this is now questionable from ‘many’ angles… A ‘dogfight’ but never closing on the enemy, ‘reports’ of shootdowns, etc.
At this stage I can’t help but wonder if some or all of the shootdowns were blue on blue on either or both sides. Especially if you are firing at ‘something’ beyond visual range (BVR).
FWIW, US policy is that you have to visually ID your target, which is why the F-14s in the US never fired a Phoenix missile in air to air combat, because even though they could get lockups BVR, they couldn’t shoot. Iran actually fired more Phoenix missiles than the US ever has.
I think there are WAY too many questions right now, but the one thing that IS apparent is that both sides are continuing to escalate…
Dammit…
Sounds like the Battle of the Coral Sea of dogfights.
9:2 Pakistan opens the cans of Sunshine first.
Never SUCCESSFULLY fire an Phoenix.
On January 5, 1999, a pair of US F-14s fired two Phoenixes at Iraqi MiG-25s southeast of Baghdad. Both AIM-54s’ rocket motors failed and neither missile hit its target.[17][18]
On September 9, 1999, another US F-14 launched an AIM-54 at an Iraqi MiG-23 that was heading south into the no-fly zone from Al Taqaddum air base west of Baghdad. The missile missed, eventually going into the ground after the Iraqi fighter reversed course and fled north.[19]
Gerry: Well, THAT inspires confidence in good ‘ole US of A engineering.
USS Constellation CV-64 participated in a drone shoot-down exercise using ship defense missiles. I THINK we hit it, but then again, it would be bad for morale to tell the crew “Hey, we can’t hit $#!t”. IIRC: one FTF, one corkscrewed into the water, one went “whoosh!” but stayed on the rail, one missed, one hit (or so we were told). Fun times.
Pres. Trump organized a ceasefire. We shall all see if that holds.
During partition of Imperial India the Hindus and Muslims managed to kill one another to the tune of ~4.5 million. Some estimates go as high as 6 million. Most deaths were caused by clubs, swords, and knives. Machine-guns were high tech. Now both sides have nukes.
“Interesting Times” indeed.
There’s a ceasefire. But as long as Pakistan is muslim and India is not peace can never exist. Islamic doctrine won’t allow for peace.
Surly- Definitely possible…
B- Agreed
Gerry- Huh, I missed that. So did the Phoenix’s obviously…
LL- One hopes.
Stretch- Yep!
Dan- Agreed!
They’re both entirely full of shit. Literally, in India’s case.
S2 underground reports the “war” is over as of 2000 EST.
Cleansing atomic fire would’ve improved the region as a whole..