A high-ranking French intelligence official has claimed that Pakistan downed at least one Rafale fighter jet operated by the Indian Air Force, marking the first time that one of the French-made warplanes has been lost in combat.
On Wednesday, military spokesman Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry announced Pakistan had downed five Indian Air Force fighter jets in retaliation for India targeting locations in various cities of Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Security sources claimed the downed jets included three Rafales, a Su-30MKI and a MiG-29 Fulcrum. While India has yet to confirm any of the crashes, the French disclosure has validated Pakistan’s assertion.
Speaking with CNN on condition of anonymity, the French official said French authorities were looking into whether more than one Rafale jet was shot down by Pakistan overnight.
Pictures of debris from a jet crash in India-held Kashmir showed the label of a French manufacturer, but confusion persisted, as experts said it was difficult to confirm whether the debris belonged to a Rafale aircraft. CNN said Dassault Aviation, the French manufacturer of the jet, has not offered any comment.
The IAF had 36 Rafale jets before tensions between the neighboring countries escalated after a militant attack at Pahalgam that killed 26 people on April 22.