Beyond hardware: PAF’s success in the May 2025 war |
The Pakistan-India May 2025 war is referenced in the November 2025 report produced by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission for the US Congress. This congressional commission monitors and reports on US-China relations and their national security impacts.
In the report, the focus is maintained on Chinese-produced weaponry, emphasising that Pakistan’s success in the May 2025 war was a product of the Chinese-supplied J-10C, PL-15, and HQ-9. Moreover, citing the Indian Army as its source, the report also alleged Pakistan’s use of Chinese intelligence during the war.
These assertions undermine the basic essence of the PAF’s victory: its transformation into a forward-leaning, resilient, and next-generation air force under the incumbent Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu. Undoubtedly, PAF’s victory came about through the use of Chinese-supplied weaponry, but the core argument is missing. It was the excellent deployment of these systems, coupled with rigorous training of PAF pilots and indigenised systems developed by the NASTP — the brainchild of the current air chief — that overwhelmed the IAF.
Pakistan demonstrated its ability to employ its air force in a highly potent manner, yet this fact has been undermined and left unacknowledged. The truth is........