It could also be a way of not showing any loss or keeping people guessing. The fact remains that the IAF only requested 35 F4 upgrades not 36.
Operation Sindoor: Aftermath
- Thread starter Defc0n
- Start date
Or maybe the damaged aircraft was repaired as we never saw the full wreckage, just M-88 parts and tail-fins.
Are we really confident it's Rafale engine? I am not a defence expert so I can't claim either. But I see everyone claiming everything under the living SUN.
As per my understanding if there is part of an engine broken from a flying aircraft, it will be miraculous to regain the control and land the bird in one piece and again I am not a defence expert, so this is my personal opinion.
150 hours/year is low. Surprising for a country which lacks jets squads....
The tail picture was clearly said to be false.
I have seen some desperate propaganda by opposition saying that Indian government was trying to hide casualties for an year. Pasting these tweets here to prove that army disclosed all casualties as and when they happened.
1. 2. 3. 4.
1. 2. 3. 4.
But there is no official statement to support the claim of 35 Rafales upgrade to F4......that was just a random french website on which even french guys dont trust ....just like ****
The SPECTRA suite of Indian Rafales neutralized Pakistani radars during the Sindoor strikes.
Operation Sindoor, conducted by the Indian Air Force in response to the Pahalgam attack, has brought to light new details about the role of the Rafales, contradicting the initial accounts relayed by Islamabad and Beijing. Reports describe deep penetrations into Pakistani airspace under heavy air and ground-to-air cover, with offensive use of electronic warfare to neutralize radar barriers and secure the raids.
This sequence places the performance of the SPECTRA self-protection system at the heart of the operation and fuels divergent interpretations of the confrontation.
Contents
1. Operation Sindoor: The Rafale Confronts Pakistani Anti-Access Denial
2. SPECTRA Protected Indian Rafales During Deep-Sea Missions in Pakistani Airspace
3. Analysis of an Intact PL-15E Will Enhance the Self-Protection of Indian Fighter Jets
Operation Sindoor: The Rafale Confronts Pakistani Anti-Access Denial
From May 7 to 10, 2025, New Delhi targeted military installations and infrastructure associated with terrorist groups in Pakistan, in retaliation for the April 22 attack. The operation was conducted in contested airspace, structured by integrated air defenses and early warning fighters. Indian aircraft operated in coordinated waves, making extensive use of electromagnetic means to protect sensors, communications, and navigation, while disrupting enemy radars and fire control systems.
The Rafale was deployed with its SPECTRA suite, which combines early warning receivers, jammers, and decoys to detect, classify, and counter threats in real time. Crews flew deep into the air without a dedicated air defense suppression escort, repeatedly repelling lock-on attempts and surface-to-air missile launches. Countermeasures deceived or saturated guidance systems, allowing offensive pressure to be maintained and strikes to be executed while preserving a safe exit trajectory toward India.
The Pakistani deployment relied on long-range surface-to-air missiles and modern interceptors. Post-operation reports describe the underperformance of the HQ-9 system and the lack of conclusive evidence supporting the J-10C and PL-15 air-to-air missile combination during the engagements mentioned. The JF-17 reportedly failed to prevent strikes against sensitive sites. These assessments were formulated cautiously, without publicly available figures on losses or the Pakistani rules of engagement.
SPECTRA protected Indian Rafales during deep missions in Pakistani airspace. A document commented on last year by a regional media outlet summarized this sequence in harsh terms. The Afghan Diaspora Network stated that the Indian operation was the “clearest example” of the inadequacy of Pakistan’s defense systems. The quote was reported as part of a non-governmental retrospective assessment, without a detailed technical publication on firing parameters and engagement conditions.
Group Captain Ranjeet Singh Sidhu led several attack missions during this operation. A decorated officer of the Vir Chakra, he had flown one of the first Rafales to India in 2020. His squadron was engaged in highly constrained entry and exit profiles, with continuous monitoring of SPECTRA alerts to balance evasive maneuvers and maintaining the effect on the target. This approach was cited as one of the factors protecting Indian aircrews during the period under review.
Information released after the strikes reignited the debate between active electromagnetic stealth and low structural observability. Rafales conducted penetrations and neutralized surface-to-air threats through the combined action of detection, electronic attack, and decoys, on profiles often associated with "stealth" platforms. While this engagement does not yield a broad technical conclusion, it illustrates the value of an integrated electronic warfare suite extending through to the terminal phase of missions.
Analysis of an intact PL-15E missile will enhance the self-protection capabilities of Indian combat aircraft.
Indian industry sources have indicated that several PL-15E missiles, recovered relatively intact, were analyzed post-conflict. The objective was to refine threat libraries and algorithms for the electronic warfare suites equipping the Tejas Mk1A, modernized Su-30MKI, and Rafale fleets. These software updates reportedly targeted mid-course update and active radar tracking phases—without requiring major hardware modifications—to degrade the effectiveness of the interception profiles in question.
In parallel, cooperation between Bharat Electronics Limited and Thales has expanded to include key microwave modules for the SPECTRA system. This collaboration builds on experience gained with the RBE2 radar, for which over 7,000 transmit-receive modules had previously been localized for domestic production. Components manufactured in India facilitate the simultaneous detection of hostile emissions and the generation of countermeasures, while sensitive software and threat libraries remain under the control of the original manufacturer.
After-action reports indicate damage inflicted on bases, hangars, and radar installations in Pakistan, whereas Indian losses have not been independently documented. Available information describes an operation characterized by the intensive use of integrated electronic warfare, enabling the penetration of multi-layered defenses and the preservation of the participating aircraft. By all accounts from Indian stakeholders, this engagement has reinforced the Rafale’s standing within frontline units.
Operation Sindoor, conducted by the Indian Air Force in response to the Pahalgam attack, has brought to light new details about the role of the Rafales, contradicting the initial accounts relayed by Islamabad and Beijing. Reports describe deep penetrations into Pakistani airspace under heavy air and ground-to-air cover, with offensive use of electronic warfare to neutralize radar barriers and secure the raids.
This sequence places the performance of the SPECTRA self-protection system at the heart of the operation and fuels divergent interpretations of the confrontation.
Contents
1. Operation Sindoor: The Rafale Confronts Pakistani Anti-Access Denial
2. SPECTRA Protected Indian Rafales During Deep-Sea Missions in Pakistani Airspace
3. Analysis of an Intact PL-15E Will Enhance the Self-Protection of Indian Fighter Jets
Operation Sindoor: The Rafale Confronts Pakistani Anti-Access Denial
From May 7 to 10, 2025, New Delhi targeted military installations and infrastructure associated with terrorist groups in Pakistan, in retaliation for the April 22 attack. The operation was conducted in contested airspace, structured by integrated air defenses and early warning fighters. Indian aircraft operated in coordinated waves, making extensive use of electromagnetic means to protect sensors, communications, and navigation, while disrupting enemy radars and fire control systems.
The Rafale was deployed with its SPECTRA suite, which combines early warning receivers, jammers, and decoys to detect, classify, and counter threats in real time. Crews flew deep into the air without a dedicated air defense suppression escort, repeatedly repelling lock-on attempts and surface-to-air missile launches. Countermeasures deceived or saturated guidance systems, allowing offensive pressure to be maintained and strikes to be executed while preserving a safe exit trajectory toward India.
The Pakistani deployment relied on long-range surface-to-air missiles and modern interceptors. Post-operation reports describe the underperformance of the HQ-9 system and the lack of conclusive evidence supporting the J-10C and PL-15 air-to-air missile combination during the engagements mentioned. The JF-17 reportedly failed to prevent strikes against sensitive sites. These assessments were formulated cautiously, without publicly available figures on losses or the Pakistani rules of engagement.
SPECTRA protected Indian Rafales during deep missions in Pakistani airspace. A document commented on last year by a regional media outlet summarized this sequence in harsh terms. The Afghan Diaspora Network stated that the Indian operation was the “clearest example” of the inadequacy of Pakistan’s defense systems. The quote was reported as part of a non-governmental retrospective assessment, without a detailed technical publication on firing parameters and engagement conditions.
Group Captain Ranjeet Singh Sidhu led several attack missions during this operation. A decorated officer of the Vir Chakra, he had flown one of the first Rafales to India in 2020. His squadron was engaged in highly constrained entry and exit profiles, with continuous monitoring of SPECTRA alerts to balance evasive maneuvers and maintaining the effect on the target. This approach was cited as one of the factors protecting Indian aircrews during the period under review.
Information released after the strikes reignited the debate between active electromagnetic stealth and low structural observability. Rafales conducted penetrations and neutralized surface-to-air threats through the combined action of detection, electronic attack, and decoys, on profiles often associated with "stealth" platforms. While this engagement does not yield a broad technical conclusion, it illustrates the value of an integrated electronic warfare suite extending through to the terminal phase of missions.
Analysis of an intact PL-15E missile will enhance the self-protection capabilities of Indian combat aircraft.
Indian industry sources have indicated that several PL-15E missiles, recovered relatively intact, were analyzed post-conflict. The objective was to refine threat libraries and algorithms for the electronic warfare suites equipping the Tejas Mk1A, modernized Su-30MKI, and Rafale fleets. These software updates reportedly targeted mid-course update and active radar tracking phases—without requiring major hardware modifications—to degrade the effectiveness of the interception profiles in question.
In parallel, cooperation between Bharat Electronics Limited and Thales has expanded to include key microwave modules for the SPECTRA system. This collaboration builds on experience gained with the RBE2 radar, for which over 7,000 transmit-receive modules had previously been localized for domestic production. Components manufactured in India facilitate the simultaneous detection of hostile emissions and the generation of countermeasures, while sensitive software and threat libraries remain under the control of the original manufacturer.
After-action reports indicate damage inflicted on bases, hangars, and radar installations in Pakistan, whereas Indian losses have not been independently documented. Available information describes an operation characterized by the intensive use of integrated electronic warfare, enabling the penetration of multi-layered defenses and the preservation of the participating aircraft. By all accounts from Indian stakeholders, this engagement has reinforced the Rafale’s standing within frontline units.