First UAV Air-to-Air Kill

[Windjammer]

By Najam Khan | June 7, 2014 | F-16 Fighting Falcon
Exactly 12 years ago, the same day an F-16B Sr# 83-605 from No.9 MultiRole Sqn shot down Indian Air Force Searcher-II UAV near Lahore. The Indian AF UAV was on a spying mission over Lahore. Such mission was of vital importance to Indian AF as both sides were in high tension on border and gathering any information behind enemy lines may have been game changer.

During the Operational Sentinel, which lasted from December 2001 to end October 2002, PAF remained high alert and distributed its fighting elements across various Forward Operating Air Bases (FOBs) and air fields and conducted Combat Air Patrol (CAP) missions across Pakistan.

During one similar CAP mission, two IAF UAVs were spotted near Lahore, both bogies took off from airfield in Jammu. Hot scramble was initiated from two locations Rafiqui Air Base, Shorkot and Minhas Air Base, Kamra. In the initial scramble by two Mirages and two F-7s; Searcher-II drones with low-radar and low-visual/IR signal were not spotted. Later an F-16B spotted the low level flying UAV at about at 13,000 ft. Sqn Ldr Zulfiqar Ayub and Sqn Ldr Afzal Aman flying in the F-16 opted for AIM-9L heat seeking missile for the kill. The wreckage fell off at the Dogran Kalan village, South-West of Lahore.

According to ACM Mushaf Ali Mir, CAS PAF’s statement ” The UAV was spotted by the mobile observation units when it crossed into Pakistani territory and was immediately gunned down.”
Today the wreckage of this UAV is placed outside No.9 Sqn Office and Mushaf Air Base,
Sargodha.history museum marking a unique encounter of a supersonic fighter aircraft with UAV.
This is perhaps the first air combat engagement of a manned and unmanned aircraft.

The following sequence of events from that night show the F-16s in hot scramble.

Wreckage of IAF UAV showing marking of Isreali Aircraft Industries. The UAV was wearing no-marking, and was believed to be put in service with Indian AF in a ‘hurry’.

 

[FunkyGen]

It's sad that we had to engage a petty UAV with a F 16....
Anza should have been enough.

 

[Windjammer]

It's sad that we had to engage a petty UAV with a F 16....
Anza should have been enough.

During hostilities in the middle of night, we couldn't take any chance besides Anza can only engage once the target is visible or so i believe.

 

[FunkyGen]

During hostilities in the middle of night, we couldn't take any chance besides Anza can only engage once the target is visible or so i believe.

Killing a fly with hammer is desperation, catching it with chop sticks is innovation!

 

[Windjammer]

Killing a fly with hammer is desperation, catching it with chop sticks is innovation!

When you are facing a war like situation against a much larger enemy, there's a little room to do experiments.

 

[Thirdfront]

What can spend do at night flying 13000 ft?

 

[rockstar08]

wow thats one cool info .. thanks @Windjammer

 

[l'ingénieur]

Pakistan desperately needs drones spy drones for battle again terrorism.

 

[ares]

IAF's Searcher-II Loss on June 07, 2002


In a year that saw India-Pakistan peacetime tensions soar to an all-time high, it was not unusual for the respective militaries to send Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) on spying missions into each others' airspace. Kept away from the public eye, only some of these missions would be known to the media; and that too only if governments wished to derive some political or rhetorical mileage.

Occasionally, these drones would be detected and be defended against by all possible means. For their operators the price of intelligence was too high compared to the potential loss of a UAV. In one such operation on Friday 7th June 2002, two IAF Searcher-IIs penetrated Pakistani air space at low level near Lahore. In response two Mirages and four F-7Ps were scrambled from Rafique which failed to detect the small, slow moving aircraft . Another pair of F-16s took off from Kamra and were able to down one Searcher [S/N 'T-2004']; thus achieving a rare air-to-air kill of a drone at night.

The PAF claimed that the intruding aircraft was shot down at 2300 Hrs; its wreckage recovered at the Dogran Kalan village (close Raja Jang town) south-west of Lahore [02], which is the capital of Pakistan's Punjab province. The victim had taken off from an airfield in Jammu [03].

The interception was carried out by a PAF F-16B [S/N '82-605'] Falcon flown by Sqn Ldr Zulfiqar at 13,000 ft . ACM Mir's statement; "The UAV was spotted by the mobile observation units when it crossed into Pakistani territory and was immediately gunned down" substantiates that the intruder was not detected by a radar. The wreckage photos show the remains of a AIM-9L Sidewinder AAM, probably the one which downed the UAV. AIM-9L is the more sophisticated than the AIM-9P version of the missile, which is also in service with the PAF.

Searcher-II has an endurance of 14 hours and venture out for 250 Km from the base; it can climb up to an altitude of 16,000 Ft (4875 m). It is not known to what degree it fulfilled its mission but the depth of interception was significant considering that Pakistan's Air Defence Net is strongest in Punjab. Neither is it known what pattern the Aircraft flew over Pakistan and for how long; but still it would be a mistake to take Dogran Kalan's straight distance from the International Border at Punjab as the measure of intrusion since the mission started from Jammu and/or the route taken could have been circuitous.

For Pakistan, the detection of the spy plane and its interception was projected as a proof of capability of their air defence network; even though the same can be viewed as a serious bungling judging by the distance it traveled into Pakistan.

At a press conference held at PAF Chakala on June 10, Then PAF Chief of Air Staff ACM Mushaff Ali Mir made wild allegations of direct involvement of Israeli personnel in the mission, based on the fact that it supposedly did not have any Indian markings. He also felt that the aircraft was inducted only a few months back in a "hurry" [04]. In any case, none of the publicly available pictures of IAF Searchers show any conventional IAF markings such as Roundels and Fin Flash, except for the serial number.

The PAF went as far as to say that they would study the wreckage extensively in order to further their grasp of the technology, which would correspondingly give them a "leap of 8-10 years".

Indian external affairs officials admitted losing contact with a UAV in that region, but described it as a routine matter. In a statement issued to the Indian Parliament on 18 July 2002 then Indian Raksha Mantri (Defence Minister) George Fernandes acknowledged the UAV being "shot down by a Pakistan Air Force aircraft"

 

[Chak Bamu]

This could have been brought down with SAMs, but it was better to employ an F-16. During a time of high tensions, it is not advisable to betray the placement of SAM batteries.

Good shooting practice for F-16.

 

[Thirdfront]

One more thing, first UAV air-to-air kills were during WW2. British pilots shot down number of German V-1s and US P-51 downing German mistels... Number of USAF Drones shot down in Vietnam war by Chinese and Vietnamese pilots in 64-69 period...

US Air-to-Air Losses in the Vietnam War

I don't understand why there is so much inclination for "world record", for the "first time" etc etc insted of just presenting the facts of the incident.... makes the source of the claim so unreliable....

 

[Windjammer]

One more thing, first UAV air-to-air kills were during WW2. British pilots shot down number of German V-1s and US P-51 downing German mistels... Number of USAF Drones shot down in Vietnam war by Chinese and Vietnamese pilots in 64-69 period...

US Air-to-Air Losses in the Vietnam War

I don't understand why there is so much inclination for "world record", for the "first time" etc etc insted of just presenting the facts of the incident.... makes the source of the claim so unreliable....

The difference is the size, those shot down during WW2 or Vietnam were either flying bombs or the likes of F-4 converted into a drone so basically just another aircraft. with same RCS.

 

[Irfan Baloch]

Killing a fly with hammer is desperation, catching it with chop sticks is innovation!

such innovative phrases look good n a web or a friendly gathering and thats where they belong

its the mission that counts. insist on thinking in single dimension and damn yourself to be surprised and superseded forever


there are couple of footage to ease your concern that what PAF did was not excessive but very much a standard SOP


Russia taking out Georgian UAV

Israel taking out UAV

please dont read anymore if you are still disturbed about this 7 June atrocity by PAF. maybe in your mind the UAV should have been allowed to return back with its intelligence data and this is why thankfully you are not in charge of Air Defence command who decided otherwise.



@Windjammer
over the years Indians have been probing our reaction time, preparedness and ground and air defense systems. some of their missions are just to provoke a reaction and in some they are intelligence gathering and are willing to take losses.
there are three kinds of missions that an enemy has in mind which can range from location, suppression to destruction.
the terms themselves are self explanatory.

Indian Jets and UAVs are on spying missions to detect our systems so that when the hostilities arise and they either try to copy the Americans to target the Kamoke or an all out war breaks out then the data from these missions will come handy.

its good that IAF has been clipped on its ears and escorted out of the Pakistani airspace (Indian MKI's near Lahore) , forced landed (Indian copter in NA) or shot down like this drone.

This could have been brought down with SAMs, but it was better to employ an F-16. During a time of high tensions, it is not advisable to betray the placement of SAM batteries.

Good shooting practice for F-16.

Bingo

you nailed it.. time and again the Indian air force has been sending UAV or jets to locate our stationary air defence systems , specially SAM sites. employing jets defeats their mission.

 

[MilSpec]

Any reason why 2 F7's and 2 mirages couldn't spot the Uav but the F16 did? Also wonder why didn't the F16 try a gun kill? the little Uav wasn't going anywhere

 

[special]

fighter jets for ani-uav role??
in india we use ground fire for shoot down pakistani uav..

Lt Col Rathore of the Indian Army displayes wreckage of a Pakistan UAV shot down over Mendhar, Poonch in J&K on 05th Feb 2003. The UAV is of Italian make and was flying 400m on Indian side of the LoC. The aircraft was down by ground fire. Debris recovered included one wing, engine Assembly, a frame and transmitters.