Disclaimer: This article is based on official reports, statements, and various sources in Indian and Pakistani military establishments. The author has taken the liberty to build the narrative based on those inputs to come to a conclusion.

On 31 May 2025, India’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, gave an interview to Bloomberg on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security forum in Singapore. The Bloomberg correspondent asked whether Pakistan was correct in claiming that “six Indian jets” were downed. General Chauhan denied the claim, stating: “Absolutely incorrect and that is not information which, as I said, is important. What is important is why they went down. That is more important for us. And what did we do after that? That’s more important.”

This was a candid admission of some losses while achieving the aim. He further elaborated, “The good part is we were able to understand the tactical mistake which we made, remedy it, rectify it, and then implement it again after two days and flew all our jets, again targeting at long range.”

While India was straightforward in admitting that one or two losses occurred, Pakistan, backed by China, grew emboldened and made wild claims without acknowledging its own losses. To hide its loss of five fighters and one AEW&C (airborne early warning and control) aircraft in the air, 13 fighters and several UAVs on the ground, and the major damage to its ground facilities, runways, and air defense systems, it further exaggerated its claims. One claim was that its fighters destroyed an Indian S-400 radar system at Adampur, Punjab.

The Sequence of Events

On May 7, 2025, Indian Air Force (IAF) fighters took out terrorist hideouts in Pakistan and the Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. For India, the operation against the terrorists’ infrastructure was focused, measured, and non-escalatory. However, Pakistan, by attacking the Indian military and civilian establishments, had declared war. That is why the Indian military leadership went back to the drawing board for two days, came back, destroyed the Pakistani military infrastructure, and demonstrated how a modern war is fought. The Pakistani military was brought to a standstill, forcing it to beg for a ceasefire.

According to the Stimson Center, “On May 8 through May 10, India’s integrated air and missile defense system appears to have largely defeated several waves of Pakistani drone attacks of ambiguous scope, scale, and intensity. On May 9-10, the Indian air and missile defense system appears to have worked against limited Pakistani short-range ballistic missile attacks as well. After May 7, Pakistan inflicted virtually no observable damage on Indian military units or facilities, though Indian officials have said there was some damage at four installations.”

The think tank further elaborates that on May 8-9, Pakistan unsuccessfully launched several drone attacks on India, whereas Indian attacks against the Chinese HQ-9B air defense systems were highly successful. At least two HQ-9B at Lahore and near Chaklala were destroyed, and two others were severely damaged, rendering them unusable.

In the absence of air defense systems, the PAF was grounded. In frustration, Pakistan launched its Fatah 1, 2, and other missiles toward India’s capital, New Delhi. The missiles were successfully intercepted by layered Indian air defense systems, including the Akash and S-400. The mention of the usage of other missiles is interesting. According to some accounts, the other missile type was the nuclear-capable Shaheen II missile. The use of the Shaheen II missile with a conventional warhead was to check the Indian AD systems’ capabilities.

The Shaheen II, to the frustration of the Pakistani military establishment, was also brought down by the Indian S-400. The use of this missile panicked the US administration, and the Indian government received a call from the US Vice President, JD Vance, that Pakistan was planning something nefarious.

The Prime Target

In the escalating war, the S-400 emerged as the main hindrance to any Pakistani retaliation against India. Before I go further, I will draw readers’ attention to two statements. One was issued by Major General Ashok Kumar (Retd), Director General of the Centre for Joint Warfare Studies (CENJOWS) in New Delhi in May 2025, and another by the Deputy Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Rahul Singh, in July 2025. Both implied that China provided satellite coverage over India to Pakistan during the period from the April 22 Pahalgam massacre until the end of hostilities between the two nations. Whether they were implying that China was complicit in the massacre is unclear.

China’s space-based surveillance could provide the exact location of Indian S-400 systems to Pakistan. Thus, in the absence of air defense systems, the PAF went on a kamikaze mission. A JF-17 Block III took off carrying CM-400AKG. CM-400AKG is a Chinese-made, supersonic, air-launched anti-ship/standoff quasi-ballistic missile.

The CM-400AKG supersonic anti-ship missile is a derivative of China’s SY-400 guided rocket system. The SY-400 is a modular short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) developed by China, drawing inspiration from its B-611 ballistic missile. The B-611 is based on an evolved design from the earlier Chinese SRBMs DF-11. The DF-11 is considered a solid-fueled adaptation and evolution of the Soviet R-17 (Scud-B). CM-400AKG is a near-hypersonic (Mach 4+, therefore, not hypersonic as claimed by PAF from time to time) quasi-ballistic missile with a 200-400 km range.

To assist with the weapon’s guidance, an AEW&C aircraft was also in the air. The Chinese satellites had already located the Indian S-400 and passed the same to the Pakistani forces. The JF-17, stationed around 200 km from the international border, released its weapon. The AEW&C aircraft, positioned at a distance of around 300 km, started guiding the weapon. While doing so, both aircraft were exposed. The CM-400AKG was destroyed closer to the Indian border, however, the JF-17 was shot down at around 200 km, and the AEW&C aircraft was hit at a record distance of 314 km. To hide their frustration, Pakistani authorities declared the successful destruction of the S-400 radar system for public consumption.

Not So Lucky the Next Time

Up until now, a combination of countermeasures, decoy emitters, inflatable dummies, and rapid relocation drills has safeguarded the S-400. The 91N6E “Big Bird” surveillance radar, the 92N6E “Grave Stone” engagement radar, and the 5P85TE2 transporter-erector-launchers are all large metallic structures mounted on 8×8 BAZ-64022 and MZKT chassis. To a modern high-resolution SAR satellite operating in spotlight (a high-resolution technique where the antenna steers its beam to focus on a small, specific area for an extended time) or stripmap mode (a continuous, long strip of imagery), each battery appears as a cluster of bright, unmistakable reflectors-even when camouflaged with standard nets.

During Operation Sindoor, Chinese Yaogan-series SAR and electro-optical satellites were tasked to hunt the Indian batteries to facilitate Pakistan’s war efforts. This is a new normal. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) may not fight a war alongside Pakistan against India, but it would facilitate the future war efforts for sure.

While mobility helps the S-400 battery to displace in under ten minutes, wide-area SAR coverage can simply re-scan the same region every 60-90 minutes until the battery is found again.

Therefore, the IAF and the Electronics & Radar Development Establishment (LRDE) have now launched a two-pronged materials program. The first focus is on broadband radar-absorbent materials (RAM) specially tuned for the X, Ku, and Ka-band frequencies used by the Chinese military SAR constellations. Unlike aircraft-grade RAM, these new coatings and appliqué panels must withstand desert heat, Himalayan cold, monsoon humidity, and road vibration while being rapidly applied in field conditions.

The second focus involves metamaterial-based frequency-selective surface (FSS) blankets and deployable screens that can be erected around a battery position in minutes. These lightweight structures are designed to bend incoming radar waves around the radars and launchers, dramatically shrinking the overall radar cross-section without interfering with the S-400’s own emitters.

The new materials will allow S-400 units to operate in “silent” mode for days inside a large denial zone. While the IAF would like the process to commence at the earliest, it is unlikely to begin before 2027 and end by 2030. Once the process is over, a loud and clear message will go to the enemy — we have the S-400, but we never let you know exactly where it is at any given moment. That uncertainty alone will keep enemy AEW&C aircraft, fighters, and drones in a panic mode, forcing them to take chances and make mistakes. Because in a war, the ones looking for a lucky chance rarely survive, but the ones who make their own luck live to fight another day.