The Indian Air Force (IAF) marked the grand finale of the 77th Republic Day parade on Kartavya Path on Monday with a large-scale aerial fly-past, underscoring India’s air power and advanced strike capabilities. On this occasion the airforce released a series of eighth videos showing a glimpse of India’s aerial might, out of them two videos stood out which helped quash Pakistani propaganda.
One of the videos featured a Rafale fighter jet with tail number BS-022, the same aircraft that the Pakistan Air Force had falsely claimed was shot down during the four-day military stand-off following Operation Sindoor. Pakistan-based propaganda accounts had earlier alleged that Pakistan had destroyed Indian Rafale jets and S-400 air defence systems during the operation. India has clarified that none of its Rafale jets suffered any harm or damage.
Another video released by the IAF on Republic Day showed fully armed fighter jets, including French-acquired Rafales, Sukhoi aircraft and indigenously manufactured Tejas, equipped with advanced missiles such as Meteor, BrahMos and Rampage. The footage was aimed at countering claims by Pakistani and some western critics that India did not possess the beyond-visual-range Meteor missile it had said was used during the 2019 Balakot strikes and Operation Sindoor last year.
The footage showed Rafale, Sukhoi and Tejas aircraft carrying Meteor and BrahMos missiles that were used against Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, putting months of speculation to rest. In one segment, a Tejas light combat aircraft was seen firing a Meteor missile, while a fully loaded Mirage 2000 carried the same model of missiles used by the IAF during the 2019 Balakot strike. The IAF also showcased the Rampage air-to-surface missile, which was carried by Sukhoi-30MKIs during Operation Sindoor.
What is a Meteor missile?
Meteor is a next-generation beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile system with a range in excess of 200 km. Designed for high-intensity combat, it offers multi-shot capability, can engage highly manoeuvrable targets such as fighter jets as well as UAVs and cruise missiles, and is effective in heavy electronic countermeasure environments. Powered by a solid-fuel ramjet motor, the missile can exceed Mach 4 and has a large no-escape zone, while its fragmentation warhead ensures high lethality.
In September 2016, India and France signed a 7.87 billion euro deal for 36 Rafale fighter jets equipped with the latest missiles, weapon systems and India-specific modifications, including Meteor and Scalp missiles. In April 2025, India Navy signed a defense agreement with France to procure 26 Rafale-Marine fighter jets, valued at approximately ₹63,000 crore. The deal includes 22 single-seat jets and 4 twin-seat jets; the aircraft is expected to address the limitations of the existing MiG-29K fleet.
The videos released by IAF has dispelled all rumours about the downing of a Rafale jet by the Pakistani fighter jets and cleared up the confusion regarding the availability of meteor missiles in IAF inventory.
Operation Sindoor: India’s answer to Pahalgham massacre
India carried out “precision strikes” under Operation Sindoor on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir following the Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 civilians dead.
In the initial phase, the Indian Air Force targeted terror camps linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen across Pakistan and PoK. The strikes killed more than 100 terrorists, including 10 family members of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar and four of his close aides.
After Pakistan attempted a retaliatory military response, including plans to target Indian cities and key installations, India escalated the operation. In a second phase on the night of May 9–10, Indian forces struck several major Pakistani airbases, including Nur Khan, Sargodha, Jacobabad, Murid and Rafiqui, causing damage that Pakistan has yet to publicly account for.
Operation Sindoor led to four days of cross-border fighting, involving fighter jets, missiles and artillery.