On-camera confession: Pakistan’s ex-air marshal admits AWACS damaged in Operation Sindoor

NEW DELHI: Pakistan’s retired Air Marshal Masood Akhtar publicly admitted on camera that the country's vital Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft sustaine damage during India’s recent precision strikes under Operation Sindoor.“They [Indian forces] fired four back-to-back BrahMos missiles—surface-to-surface or air-to-surface, I’m not sure,” Akhtar said in a TV interview that later went viral on social media. “Our pilots rushed to secure the aircraft, but the missiles kept coming. Unfortunately, the fourth one hit the hangar at Bholari airbase, where one of our AWACS was standing. It was damaged.”The video, posted by conflict-tracking platform Frontal Force on X, comes after Indian Air Marshal AK Bharti confirmed that 11 Pakistani air bases were hit in under three hours.

"A decision was taken to strike where it would hurt," he explained, describing how Indian military executed a precise, synchronised and measured attack on crucial Pakistani defence installations, adding, "Aggression will not be tolerated.

"India launched the strikes on the night of May 9–10 in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. Operation Sindoor saw Indian forces carry out precision strikes on military installations deep inside Pakistani territory, including at Chaklala, Rafiq, and Rahim Yar Khan, subsequently attacking Sargodha, Bhulari, and Jacobabad. , targeting radar sites, command centres, and ammunition depots.While Pakistan’s military has sought to downplay the extent of the damage, Akhtar’s candid on-camera statement now stands in stark contrast to the official narrative.