According to an exclusive report by Pakistan's The News International on May 14, during the recent India-Pakistan conflict, Pakistan Air Force equipped with J-10C fighter jets and PL-15 air-to-air missiles demonstrated impressive battlefield performance. The report stated that during the engagement, Pakistani aircraft fired at a distance of approximately 181.5 kilometers, successfully targeting Indian "Rafale" fighters and others. This indicates that Indian aircraft were locked onto and shot down from a distance of nearly 190 kilometers; even if they attempted to escape an additional 10 kilometers after detecting the incoming missile, it was still ineffective.
Further disclosed by the Pakistani media, the range of the PL-15 missiles equipped by the Pakistani Air Force is between 230-280 kilometers, far exceeding the "greater than or equal to 145 kilometers" range data publicly announced for the export version PL-15E by China. This "discrepancy" has sparked widespread speculation: the PL-15E obtained by Pakistan may not be the "crippled version" as speculated, but rather close to or even equivalent to the Chinese self-use version of PL-15. The seemingly conservative official description of 145 kilometers actually leaves a huge operational space — whether it's 180 kilometers or 280 kilometers, technically there's no problem.
In addition, the J-10C fighter jet firing the PL-15E at an altitude of 18,000 meters and a speed greater than 1.5 Mach can significantly enhance the missile's kinetic energy and range. If the Indian fighter jets did little tactical maneuvering during the PL-15E attack, and the missile flew in a very energy-efficient manner, then the range advantage could be maximized. It's simple: if an air-to-air missile performs intense maneuvers, its range will be greatly reduced. Clearly, combined with the meticulous tactical planning of the Pakistani Air Force, the missile range of Indian aircraft was not only far surpassed, but they didn't even have the opportunity to launch counterattacks. The Pakistani media clearly pointed out that the missile range of Indian aircraft could not threaten Pakistani aircraft, highlighting the gap in the performance of both sides' weapon systems.
In this conflict, the ultra-long-range performance of PL-15E was just the tip of the iceberg for the "low-key" strength of Chinese export weapon systems. For a long time, China has often left room for performance descriptions of export weapons in air shows and official promotions. For example, anti-ship missiles like YJ-12E and rocket systems like WS-2D usually publicly claim a range of 290 kilometers, which is clearly done to meet arms control needs or to downplay them. However, once customers modify the weight distribution and take these weapons back for actual combat, the battlefield effects often exceed expectations, which is beyond the control of Chinese military industries. As a long-term user of Chinese weapons, Pakistan has repeatedly verified the reliability and over-standard performance of these equipment in practical combat situations, so their understanding of the phrase "know what you need to know" is very profound.
In contrast, the Rafale fighter jets purchased by India and their配套Meteor missiles (with a public range of about 150 kilometers) appeared to be struggling in this engagement. Faced with the ultra-long-distance strikes of PL-15E, the reaction time and tactical options of the Indian Air Force were greatly compressed, ultimately leading to heavy losses. This aerial battle not only exposed the equipment shortcomings of the Indian Air Force but also made the outside world reconsider the true strength of Chinese export weapons.
The PL-15E's precise kill of Rafale from 181 kilometers away can be considered a textbook showcase of Chinese export weapons. The "error" between the official announcement of "greater than 145 kilometers" and the actual performance of 230-280 kilometers is less a matter of technical ambiguity and more a strategic understatement. India got "caught" quite badly this time, but it highlights a truth: the battlefield performance of Chinese weapons has never been fully defined by air show brochures.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7507447241515303459/
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