The Indian Air Force on Wednesday shot down a Pakistani F-16 jet which had come close to the Line of Control. The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) F16 came down in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. India shot down one of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) F-16s that had come close to the LoC in Nowshera sector. The aircraft fell three kilometres in Pakistani-occupied Kashmir, officials said. As the PAF jets approached the LoC, the Indian Air Force (IAF) scrambled fighters. Retaliatory fire from the ground force forced the F-16s to return but not before one took a hit and went down. The incident occurred a day after IAF jets bombed the biggest training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) outfit in Balakot. "The jets entered the Indian air space over Nowshera in Rajouri district this morning," a police officer said, adding that the Indian fighter jets on air patrol immediately scrambled and pushed them back beyond the LoC. Indian Air Defence Systems have been on maximum alert since Tuesday. An Indian military aircraft, however, crashed in Badgam in Jammu and Kashmir, 7 kilometres from the Srinagar International Airport, police said, leading to the suspension of commercial flights across at least eight cities including Leh, Pathankot, Jammu, Srinagar and Amritsar. Simultaneously, Indian and Pakistani troops traded heavy fire using mortars and small arms in Jammu and Kashmir's Uri sector, Defence Ministry sources said. The clash occurred in Kamalkote area. Heavy firing was also continuing intermittently at 40 places on the LoC including Poonch, Rajouri and Jammu districts since Tuesday night. The Indian attack on the JeM training camp came 12 days after a suicide bomber killed 40 Central Reserve Police Force troopers in the worst terror strike in Jammu and Kashmir since militancy-hit the state in 1989. The attack was claimed by the Pakistan-based JeM. IANS For in-depth, objective and more importantly balanced journalism, Click here to subscribe to Outlook Magazine<doc-sep>Pakistan violates Indian airspace, India shoots down F-16 According to reports, India has shot down a Pakistani F-16 that had violated Indian airspace. news Conflict The conflict between India and Pakistan at the Line of Control escalated on Wednesday, after Pakistan claimed to have undertaken strikes across the Line of Control from Pakistani airspace. Following this, reports say that India has shot down a Pakistani F-16 that violated Indian airspace. According to ANI, “Pakistan Air Force's F-16 that violated Indian air space shot down in Indian retaliatory fire 3KM within Pakistan territory in Lam valley, Nowshera sector.” Pakistan Air Force's F-16 that violated Indian air space shot down in Indian retaliatory fire 3KM within Pakistan territory in Lam valley, Nowshera sector. pic.twitter.com/8emKMVpWKi February 27, 2019 The SSP of Budgam said that a military aircraft crashed in J&K’s Budgam, but that details are not clear so far. ANI quoted the SSP as saying, “Some aircraft has fallen. As of now we aren't in a position to ascertain anything. Technical team is here, they'll ascertain facts. We have found 2 bodies so far and have evacuated them. Search is going on here.” SSP Budgam on military aircraft crash in J&Ks Budgam: Some aircraft has fallen. As of now we aren't in a position to ascertain anything. Technical team is here, they'll ascertain facts. We have found 2 bodies so far and have evacuated them. Search is going on here. pic.twitter.com/9YgEIwxFRw — ANI (@ANI) February 27, 2019 On Wednesday morning, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi released a statement, that said, “Today, Pakistan Air Force undertook strikes across Line of Control from within Pakistani airspace. This was not a retaliation to continued Indian belligerence. Pakistan has therefore, taken strikes at non military target, avoiding human loss and collateral damage. Sole purpose being to demonstrate our right, will and capability for self defence. We have no intention of escalation, but are fully prepared to do so if forced into that paradigm. That is why we undertook the action with clear warning and in broad daylight.” There is no confirmation on this from the Indian defence forces or the Indian government about these strikes. Pakistan has also claimed that Indian Air Force has violated Pakistani airspace, and that an Indian Air Force Pilot has been taken into custody by them.<doc-sep>India’s claim that its MiG-21 fighter jet shot down a more modern Pakistani Air Force F-16 seems surprising at first, but a military expert tells RT there is more to the Indian Air Force than meets the eye. The IAF confirmed that one of its MiG-21 fighters downed a PAF F-16 on Thursday, two days after Pakistan said that it had shot down two Indian jets as tensions continue to mount between the two nuclear powers over the disputed territory of Kashmir. Read more News reports from battle zones often contain “inaccuracies or deliberate disinformation,” but it doesn’t mean that a MiG-21 couldn’t have hit an F-16, even though the two planes are of completely “different generations,” Mikhail Khodarenok, military expert and retired colonel who served in Russian missile defense forces, told RT. MiG-21 is a third-generation supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, which was introduced into the Soviet military in 1959. The F-16 is a fourth-generation supersonic multirole fighter, which entered service with the US Air Force almost two decades later. Obviously, the F-16 has much more advanced characteristics, including the combat radius of 547 km, compared to 370 km of MiG-21. However, Khodarenok explained that the MiG-21-93 ‘Bison’ used by the Indian Air Force is “a largely modernized version of the aircraft.” "Its ‘Spear’ radar system allows tracking down incoming enemy aircraft at a distance of up to 57 kilometers” in the front and up to 30 kilometers in the rear. It can track eight targets at the same time, with “the quick search and automatic capture of visually observed targets in close combat mode concluding with the use of guided missiles or cannon.” Also on rt.com From F-16s & Russian MiGs to old French planes: What India & Pakistan can unleash in air combat MiG-21 Bison boasts medium-range R-77 air-to-air self-guided missiles as part of its arsenal. They have a range of 110 kilometers and can reach the speed of 4250 km/h, while carrying a 22-kilogram warhead, he said. “So MiG-21-93 could’ve well shot down an F-16. And could’ve done it easily,” Khodarenok said. “Besides, the best plane is the one with the best pilot inside. The rest is details.” Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!<doc-sep>
The encounter between the Indian and Pakistani air forces above the disputed Kashmir region on 27 February resulted in the downing of two Indian jets and allegedly a Pakistani F-16, according to New Delhi. Islamabad denies losing a plane. Not only was a Pakistani F-16 allegedly shot down in a dogfight with Indian jets on Wednesday, but the pilot, Shahaz-ud-Din, was reportedly killed after successfully bailing out from the doomed aircraft, the newspaper Firstpost reported, citing London-based lawyer Khalid Umar. The lawyer, who says that he obtained the information from the pilot's family, claims that Shahaz-ud-Din was mistaken by locals in the Pakistani Nowshera sector as a pilot from a downed Indian jet and was subsequently lynched by a mob. According to Umar, the Pakistani pilot was eventually rescued by the Pakistani Army, but later died from the injuries he sustained in the assault. Relations between the two states worsened after a deadly terrorist attack on a security convoy on 14 February, reportedly organised by the group Jaish-e-Mohammed, claimed the lives of 40 Indian paramilitary servicemen. New Delhi has accused Islamabad of harbouring terrorists and organised an air raid against an alleged terror camp located on Pakistani territory. READ MORE: India to Give US Proof Pakistan Used F-16 Jets in Kashmir Air Battle — Reports The following day after the air raid, Pakistan announced that it had downed two Indian jets that entered its airspace over the disputed Kashmir border, also capturing an Indian pilot. At the same time, the Indian Air Force stated that one of its MiG-21 Bison had shot down a Pakistani Air Force F-16 during the clash, while Islamabad has denied sustaining any losses or even scrambling an F-16. Pakistan later released one of the Indian pilots "as a peace gesture" on 1 March.