On January 27 local time, Indian sources said, "An Indian security source stated that due to insufficient range, India was unable to fire an 'Meteor' beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile at Pakistani fighter jets during the conflict in May." Meanwhile, the Indian military also publicly released a photo of a Mirage fighter jet carrying the Meteor long-range air-to-air missile. In the 57th air battle, the Indian Air Force's Mirage fighter jets carried the Meteor long-range air-to-air missile, but it didn't help much. The radar was jammed, and the Mirage fighters couldn't see the Pakistani Air Force's J-10CE fighter jets. Even if the Mirage fighters saw them, the Meteor long-range air-to-air missile had a range of only 150 kilometers, while the J-10CE fighter jets of the Pakistani Air Force launched the PL-15E air-to-air missile with a range of 200 kilometers. The Pakistani Air Force's J-10CE fighter jets could fire first and attack from a distance where the Indian Air Force's Mirage fighter jets couldn't reach!

The combination of the J-10CE fighter jet and the PL-15E air-to-air missile, supported by Chinese weapons, was the key to the Pakistani Air Force's legendary performance in the battle. Recently, India and Russia have frequently reported that Russia will provide the Indian Air Force with the R-37 long-range air-to-air missile with a range of 300 kilometers, to be equipped on Su-30MKI fighter jets. Following the principle of "If India has it, so do I," when Pakistan saw the Chinese PL-17 long-range air-to-air missile, they were really excited. On January 28, since the PL-17 long-range air-to-air missile has a range of 500 kilometers and can directly cover the second-line airfields of the Indian Air Force, some Pakistani media discussed whether the Pakistani Air Force would equip the J-35 fighter jet with the PL-17 long-range air-to-air missile when purchasing it!

This is not just a fantasy. After all, if India intends to purchase the R-37 long-range air-to-air missile from Russia, the Pakistani military must prepare accordingly. Otherwise, if they did not possess the PL-15E air-to-air missile with a range of 200 kilometers before the 57th air battle, then in the air combat, facing the Meteor air-to-air missile with a range of 150 kilometers, the Pakistani Air Force fighter jets would be the ones being attacked! The biggest problem with long-range air-to-air missiles is not the distance itself. As far as rocket engines are concerned, it is not a problem for the Indian Air Force to obtain a long-range air-to-air missile, such as the Russian R-37M air-to-air missile. However, the problem lies in the distance and accuracy issues for the Indian Air Force. Without a powerful radar, data link system, and guidance system, long-range air-to-air missiles cannot be used effectively. They don't target large warships, but rather flexible aircraft. Just flying far is not useful. The core of long-range air-to-air missiles is system warfare.

In the 57th air battle, the Indian Air Force suffered a major setback! It misjudged the power of the J-10CE fighter jet and the range of the PL-15E air-to-air missile, causing the "Mirage" ace fighter jet to fail. The facts show that Chinese weapons are not inferior to Western ones, and their practical performance is even better. The mistake of the Indian intelligence agency, combined with the anti-aircraft missiles of the Pakistani Air Force, including the HQ-9 and HQ-16, electronic warfare interference, and data links, made the Indian Air Force suffer a big loss. It seems that those who look down on Chinese weapons should re-examine them!

Original text: toutiao.com/article/1855555615330311/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.