The attack targeted major ammunition depots and airbases such as Sargodha and Bholari, where F-16 and JF-17 fighter jets were stationed, sources said
India’s attack on 11 airbases of Pakistan on May 10 destroyed 20 per cent of its air force assets, and over 50 individuals were killed, including a squadron leader, top government sources told News18 on Tuesday.
The attack targeted major ammunition depots and airbases such as Sargodha and Bholari, where F-16 and JF-17 fighter jets were stationed, sources said. As a result, nearly 20% of Pakistan’s air force infrastructure was destroyed. Over 50 individuals, including Squadron Leader Usman Yusuf and four airmen, were killed in the bombing of Bholari airbase, they added.
India says several Pakistani fighter jets were also destroyed. “On May 9-10, India became the first country to strike 11 airbases of a nuclear-armed nation in a single operation, destroying 20% of Pakistan’s air force assets. High casualties were inflicted at Bholari airbase, including the death of Squadron Leader Usman Yusuf and destruction of key fighter jets,” the sources said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already said that over 100 terrorists were killed in Operation Sindoor during the May 7 strike on terrorist headquarters in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. On May 10, within just three hours, India targeted 11 military installations, including Noor Khan, Rafiqui, Murid, Sukkur, Sialkot, Pasrur, Chunian, Sargodha, Skardu, Bholari, and Jacobabad. Satellite images before and after the strike on Shahbaz airbase in Jacobabad and the Bholari airbase clearly show the scale of destruction.
The government says that on the night of May 9-10, 2025, India’s counteroffensive became a historic milestone when, for the first time, a country successfully attacked the airbases of a nuclear-armed nation. This was also possible as India earlier deployed kamikaze drones with the objective of neutralising Pakistan’s air defence capabilities, including disabling Lahore’s air defence system, sources added.