A post on social media claiming that Pakistan shot down a Sukhoi SU-30MKI of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and captured an Indian pilot is doing the rounds on the internet.
In yet another instance of misinformation shared by several accounts on social media, a post claiming that Pakistan shot down a Sukhoi SU-30MKI of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and captured an Indian pilot is doing the rounds on the internet. However, India categorically rejected the claim and dismissed it as fake news.
The post, which has gone viral, is being shared with the caption, “Breaking: Sukhoi-Su 30 MKI shot down in Muzaffarabad, Indian Pilot Captured Alive. Source: Locals told NDTV. India don’t sleep tonight because PAF is awake.”
PIB Fact-check, the fact-checking unit of the Union government, said that the photo is unrelated and the claim is false.
The image dates back to 2014, when a fighter plane Sukhoi SU-30MKI of the IAF crashed at Undre Vasti of Kulwadi village near Pune – Ahmednagar Highway in Maharashtra. The incident happened on October 14, 2014.
Fake News Alert ‼️
Pakistani social media handles are claiming that a Sukhoi Su-30MKI was shot down in Muzaffarabad, capturing an Indian Pilot alive.#PIBFactCheck
✅ This Sukhoi SU-30MKI of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed at Undre Vasti of Kulwadi village near Pune-Ahamad… pic.twitter.com/Fr5GITYQzL
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 9, 2025
There has been a surge of misinformation following ‘Operation Sindoor’. The Indian armed forces on Wednesday carried out precise missile strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.
Moreover, in another instance of misinformation doing the rounds, a news report by ‘China Daily’ claimed that at least three Indian jets crashed in Kashmir.
The post shared on X by ‘China Daily’, read, “At least three Indian jets crashed Wednesday in India-controlled Kashmir, a local newspaper The Hindu said quoting government sources. #Pakistan (sic)”.
This, again, turned out to be false, as the post contained an old image from 2019. The photo dates back to the time of the Pulwama attack.