Air Chief Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria on Friday described as a "big mistake"🐼 the IAF shooting down its helicopter in Kashmir on February 27, when Indian and Pakistani forces engaged in a dogfight and said p🐻unitive action is being taken against the guilty.
The operational preparedness of the IAF has been of a very high order a⛦nd it ac🗹hieved a number of operational milestones last year, including the Balakot strikes, Bhadauria said at the Indian Air Force's annual press conference.
The IAF i😼s prepared to meet any contingency and does not rest on past laurels, Bhadauria said.
Ahead of the 𓆉press conference, the IAF also showed video clips of the Balakot strikes.
Pakistan lost ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚan F-16 and India a MiG-21 in aerial ﷽engagement with the Pakistan Air Force a day after the Balakot strikes, IAF chief Bhadauria said.
Talking about the IAF shooting down its own Mi-17 helicopter in Budgam on the morniꦜng of February 27, he said it was a "big mistake on our part".
A Court of inquiry has submitted its report and the IAF is taking punitive action agaiಌnst the guilty, he said.
Disciplinary action is being taken against two officers in t⛦he shooting down of the chopper, the IAF chief said.
A surface-to-air missile of the Indian Air Force brought down the Mi-17 airc♊raft in Kashmir's Budgam on the morning of February 27 when the Indian and Pak𓄧istani air forces were engaged in a fierce dogfight, a high-level probe had concluded in August.
(PTI)
.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max&format=webp&w=376&dpr=2.0)
