IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

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Ved
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IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Ved »

IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!<P> <P> On 10 Aug 99 at 10:51 hrs IST an IAF ground radar picked up an aircraft track inside Sind region of Pakistan near Badin, approaching the Indo-Pakistan international border (IB) on a South-Easterly course. The track was moving at a speed of 370 kmph maintaining a height of 3000-3500 feet. It first touched the international border (at point 68 degree 48 min E, 24 degrees 18 min North) at 10:54 hrs. For the next 17-18 minutes it carried out a series of maneuvers over this area. (In this process, the track stayed within or close to 10 km of the boundary. The '91 air agreement between India and Pakistan requires all aircraft (other than helicopters) of the two countries to maintain a minimum distance of 10 kms from the border; on two occasions the PN Atlantique actually violated Indian airspace at these two points). <BR> <BR> Two MiG-21 fighter interceptors which were on operational readiness at the IAF base at Naliya in Kutch, were brought to a higher state of scramble alert as the track approached the IB. When the track crossed the international border the first time at approximately 10:57 hrs, both the interceptors were scrambled, getting airborne at 10:59 hrs. <P> The fighter controller of the ground radar vectored the fighters in a Northerly direction, to bring them in the general area at approximately 11:10 hrs. <P> By 11:12 hrs, the bogey (unidentified Pakistani track) proceeded initially West, subsequently turning and heading South till the IB (at point (68 degrees 32 min East, 23 degrees 58 min North), then turning onto a Westerly heading initially. At this time, the IAF interceptors were also directed Southwards by the radar controller and generally kept abreast of the bogey, keeping on the Indian side of the IB. <P> The bogey turned South once again and entered Indian airspace for the third time at approximately 11:14 hrs and penetrated 10 km into Indian territory before turning on an easterly heading. <P> At this stage, the fighter controller maneuvered the IAF MiG-21s so as to place the leader between the border and the intruder (to stop the intruder from escaping) and the wingman was accelerated and brought behind the unknown intruder from the other side in a pincer movement. <P> The leader made radar contact between 10-15 km range with the intruder. Both interceptors visually sighted the interceptor and identified it as an Atlantique of the Pakistani Navy. The leader closed in to 300 meters of the Atlantique, on his left, intending to formate on him and signal him visually and, if possible, communicate with him on radio to direct him to land at the nearest IAF base. <P> By now, of course, both interceptors had not only identified the intruder as an Atlantique but visually seen its identification markings. <P> As the leader of the interceptors was jockeying into position, the Atlantique turned into him in an aggressive evasive attempt. This was a hostile act. As per international norms he ought to have maintained his course and height and in fact lowered his under-carriage as a sign of submission as per the Rules of Engagement. <P> The Atlantique had earlier been declared hostile after it had been identified, as the Atlantique falls into the category of "hostile" as per established procedure. A hostile aircraft does not have the option to return home; he has only two options - follow instructions to forceland at an IAF base, or be shot down. When the intruder turned into the leader in an obvious attempt to throw the interceptor off balance and make a dash for the border, on clearance from the fighter controller the lead interceptor maneuvered his fighter and for a missile launch on the PN Atlantique to prevent him escaping. <P> On being cleared to fire by the ground radar, the leader fired an R-60 air-to-air infra-read heat-seeking missile at the Atlantique. The missile hit the intruder on the left engine which immediately caught fire and started smoking. This happened at approximately 11:17 hrs when the Atlantique was still 5 Km South of the IB on the Indian side. <P> The interceptors were immediately ordered to break away to right to ensure that they stayed within Indian territory. <P> The Atlantique after being shot continued to be seen on IAF ground radars. It entered a loose descending spiral turn to the left, burning fiercely with wreckage falling off; in the process, it described an arc 5 kms within Pakistani territory before facing an approximately South-Easterly direction again close to the IB before it disappeared from the IAF ground radar screen. <P> The behavior of the intruder while it was deliberately operating for<BR>approximately 18 minutes in the earlier part of the sortie had confirmed that it was neither lost nor violating the border inadvertently. The possibility of it being on a training mission is ruled out beyond all doubt by the profile it followed. <P> The relevant fact is that the PN Atlantic was military combat aircraft<BR>classified as 'hostile' deliberately violating Indian airspace on an operational mission. In such a situation, the Rules of Engagement dictate the shooting down of the aircraft after clearance from the controlling radar. In actual fact, the lead IAF interceptor approached it from the front quarters, showing himself plainly and was intending to formate on the Atlantique to be able to communicate with him and get him to land at an Indian airfield. The PN Atlantique did not respond to this, his last option for survival, but instead acted in a hostile manner by turning aggressively into the IAF interceptor. There was no alternative thereafter but to shoot down the Pakistani intruder to prevent it from running away after being caught while on an obvious illegal operational mission in Indian territory. <P> In the final analysis, the bottom line is..... the IAF acted in a thoroughly professional manner as per the existing Rules of Engagement, even going so far as to give the intruder a chance for survival which was rejected. The IAF continues to maintain its high state of vigilance and is confident in dealing with any future intrusions is an equally firm manner.<P> ( This is obtained from a friend of mine, and will shortly be up on the IAF site. I also have the map as a jpg file… how do I put it up? Rupak, I am sending the map to you as an attachment... could you put it up?)<P><BR>[This message has been edited by Ved (edited 15-08-1999).]<p>[This message has been edited by Ved (edited 15-08-1999).]
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Kaushal »

what does the word 'formate' mean ?. It does not say explicitly here that they signalled the intruder aircraft to follow the interceptors or have I missed something.<P>Kaushal
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Badar »

Hi,<P>Kaushal, formate means to join with him, i.e. fly 'in formation'.<P>
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by shiv »

up and thanks for the info.
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Rupak »

Image
Ved
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Ved »

Thanks, Rupak! That was fast. Now tell me how you put it up!<P> For those who are interested, the webmaster of the IAF site is holding a chat on the incident - this is as per a reply I got, as follows:<P>Thank you for your interest. <P> The Pak Navy Breguet Atlantique ASW and maritime recce aircraft was detected by Indian ground radars who scrambled a pair of MiG-21 interceptors. Despite attempts to close in and shepherd the intruding aircraft for a forced landing at the nearest Indian a ir base, the Pak Atlantique turned into the IAF fighters thus forcing them no alternative but to shoot it down.<P> The action was consistent with the current Rules of Engagement of the IAF concerning air violations.<P> Regards, <P> Group Captain DN Ganesh <BR> IAF Web Team <P>Check out our latest battle pics and new additions at the Indian Air Force home page at <BR> <A HREF="http://www.nic.in/armedforces/airforce.htm" TARGET=_blank>http://www.nic.in/armedforces/airforce.htm</A> <P>Got a question? Join my chat "IAF's Latest Kill - PN Atlantique!" at <A HREF="http://www.rediff.com" TARGET=_blank>www.rediff.com</A> from 6-7 pm IST on Mondays, 16 Aug 99. <P><BR><p>[This message has been edited by Ved (edited 15-08-1999).]
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Rupak »

Ved<P>That was fast.<P>I am the only nut in my house who has been up and surfing since 5:45 am on a Sunday.<P><BR> Now tell me how you put it up!<P>It has to be uploaded to a server (any server) before you can post it. Then all you need to do is add an "img src" link.<P>cheers<P>Rupak<BR>
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Rupak »

Faheem<P>I stumble out of bed, and instead of turning on the TV --- I go to BR ---<P>You're not alone..... Image
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by NRao »

Great map.<P>A red line showing the 10 Km line around the border would have helped. Any chance of it being "superimposed"?<P>
Ved
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Ved »

Niranjan,<P> Ask Rupak! He's the tech man.
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by vverma »

My Grandfather used to turn on the radio to get the latest news when he got up in the morning, my father used to turn on the TV and now I turn on to the web(BR) to get any relevant news. BR is slowly becoming a news outlet. I suggest you guys start thinking about floating an IPO. Image
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Kumar »

Ved, thanks for a nice article and a very good picture.<P>As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words!<P>
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by JE Menon »

>>>I stumble out of bed, and instead of turning on the TV --- I go to BR ---<P>My situation is precisely the opposite. I stumble into bed after BR so late that I rarely get enough sleep. BR should come with a "Surgeon General's warning". Image<P>Best Regards<BR>JE Menon
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by NRao »

This does put a kink in anyone supporting TSP. Has anyone on BR been "tracking" what the US has said after this map was released? Has this map appeared in any of the Indian news papers - I have not checked them so far?
Ved
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Re: IAF Scores a Kill - the actual story!!!

Post by Ved »

Niranjan Rao,<P> "Has this map appeared in any of the Indian news papers - I have not checked them so far?" I know that it was given to the Press, along with the statement, in writing. Only HT seems to have carried the map on 14 Aug. Sad!<BR>
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