The Indian Air Force (IAF) again on Friday said that F-16 aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force was shot down on February 27 during an aerial dogfight.
“The Indian Forces have confirmed sighting ejections at two different places on that day. The two sightings were at places separated by at least 8-10 km. One was an IAF MIG 21 Bison and other a PAF aircraft. Electronic signatures gathered by us indicate PAF aircraft was an F-16,” IAF said in a statement.
“Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman shot down Pakistan Air Force F-16 aircraft 7-8 km inside Pakistan Occupied Area in Sabzkot area there,” the statement added.
Moreover, IAF sources confirmed that radio communication of Pakistan Air Force intercepted by it confirmed that one of the F-16s that attacked India on February 27 did not return to its base.
The IAF statement came after the Foreign Policy magazine reported that the US count of the F-16s with Pakistan had found that none of them were missing, contradicting India’s claim that one of its fighter jets shot down a Pakistani F-16 during aerial combat.
