Singapore, May 31 - Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan has admitted that aircraft were damaged during the recent military clash with Pakistan but termed Islamabad’s claim of downing six Indian fighter jets as ‘totally wrong’.
In an interview, Anil Chauhan said it was more important to find out why the aircraft were damaged so that the Indian Army can improve its strategy and retaliate.
“I think it is not important that the fighter jets were downed, but it is important why they were downed,” he said. Gen Chauhan was asked whether India’s fighter jets were downed during the four-day military clash with Pakistan this month.
“The good thing is that we were able to understand our strategic mistakes, corrected them and re-implemented them two days later. We have again targeted all our fighter jets at long range,” General Anil Chauhan said when asked about Pakistan’s claim of shooting down six Indian aircraft during ‘Operation Sindhur’, “This is completely wrong.”
Earlier, Air Marshal AK Bharti of the Indian Air Force had admitted that ‘losses are a part of war.’ He also said that all the pylons of the Indian Air Force have returned safely.
Air Marshal AK Bharti made this comment at a press conference on May 11, when he was asked about the loss of Indian aircraft during ‘Operation Sindhur’. General Anil Chauhan is in Singapore to participate in the Shangri-La Dialogue.