BBC Verify has said that it has authenticated three videos, which purportedly show the wreckage of a French-manufactured Rafale fighter jet, the very same that are used by the Indian Air Force.
“In one clip – geolocated by BBC Verify to a field near the city of Bathinda in India’s Punjab state – troops can be seen collecting debris from the crashed jet,” the outlet said.
It added that it had also located two further clips from the same location filmed at night, with one showing debris in the field, while another showed a projectile catching fire in the sky and then fire in an open field.
“Justin Crump, a former British Army officer who runs the risk intelligence company Sibylline, told BBC Verify the wreckage appears to be a French air-to-air missile of a type used on both Mirage 2000 and Rafale fighter jets.
“Another image circulating on social media shows a tail fin with ‘BS001’ and ‘Rafale’ inscribed on it. Google reverse image searches did not show any old versions of the image.”
Pakistan’s Chinese-made jet brought down 2 Indian warplanes: US officials
A top Chinese-made Pakistani fighter plane shot down at least two Indian military aircraft on Wednesday, two US officials told Reuters, marking a major milestone for Beijing’s advanced fighter jet.
An Indian Air Force spokesperson said he had no comment when asked about the Reuters report.
The performance of a leading Chinese fighter jet against a Western rival is being closely watched in Washington for insights into how Beijing might fare in any showdown over Taiwan or the wider Indo-Pacific. One U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was high confidence that Pakistan had used the Chinese-made J-10 aircraft to launch air-to-air missiles against Indian fighter jets – bringing down at least two. Another official said at least one Indian jet that was shot down was a French-made Rafale fighter aircraft.
Both officials said Pakistan’s F-16 aircraft, made by Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab, were not used in the shootdown.