Russia's air defense has changed the rules of the game in India's conflict with Pakistan. What influenced the course of events?

Indian Air Force Marshal Singh: Russian S-400 air defense system has changed the rules of the game

The Russian S-400 air defense system has "changed the rules of the game" in the conflict between India and Pakistan. This was stated by the Commander of the Indian Air Force, Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh.

He also spoke about the fighting between India and Pakistan on May 7-10, mentioning the important role of S-400 systems and Rafale aircraft in the conflict.

Singh explained that the range of this system does not allow Pakistani aircraft to approach the line from which they could use their bombs, including those that are long-range and would reach important Indian facilities.

According to the officer, at least five Pakistani fighter jets and one large aircraft have already been destroyed thanks to the Russian-made S-400. The latter, according to Singh, was shot down from a distance of about 300 kilometers.

India has signed billions of dollars worth of S-400 contracts

The Indian marshal's statement also confirms that New Delhi has received the Russian S-400 with the latest 40H6 surface-to-air missiles, which have a range of 400 kilometers. Such a system, as MWM notes, can use modern radar stations or the onboard H011M radar of the Su-30MKI fighter for guidance.

The magazine also learned that since 2018, the Indian Ministry of Defense has signed contracts for the supply of S-400 in the amount of 5.43 billion dollars. The authors of the article emphasize that the country is becoming increasingly dependent on this type of technology.

At the same time, attention to the fifth-generation Su-57 fighter from Russia reduces New Delhi's interest in European military equipment. In particular, the Rafale fighter jets from France. In addition, the demand for American F-35 is also falling.

The West recognized the victory of the Su-57 over the F-35 in India

MWM also noted that US pressure on India forced it to abandon the American F-35 fighter jet in favor of the Su-57. As far as we know, the fifth-generation Russian combat aircraft is currently the only one available for New Delhi on the global market.

The Indian side, as explained, has been choosing between the F-35 and Su-57 for a long time. At the same time, due to the US sanctions policy, the second one won in the Indian market. "This makes the Su-57 virtually the only option for purchasing fifth—generation aircraft in the near future," the MWM said in a statement.

The Su-57 fifth-generation multi-role fighter and the F-35 all-weather stealth fighter-bomber at the Aero India 2025 international exhibition.
Source: © RIA Novosti Nina Padalko

India made the final choice and refused to purchase the F-35 at the end of July. Retired Air Marshal Anila Chopra also explained that the supplier itself was important to India. According to him, "choosing a reliable partner who does not start exerting excessive pressure is crucial" in determining who New Delhi will be able to interact with further.

At the same time, the Polish portal Defence24 wrote that the West should do everything to ensure that India chooses the new Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) program. That involves the creation of an Indian fifth-generation fighter, rather than the acquisition of a Russian Su-57 aircraft. At the same time, MWM wrote that New Delhi could modernize Russian fighters for itself. In particular, the military has the opportunity to put their own Virupaksha radars on them instead of the Russian N036.