New Delhi — Vice Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari on Saturday revealed that the Indian Air Force’s decisive strikes during Operation Sindoor compelled Pakistan to seek an end to military hostilities by midday on May 10.
Speaking at the NDTV Defence Summit, Air Marshal Tiwari said fewer than 50 precision weapons were used against carefully selected Pakistani military targets, leading to “complete domination” over Islamabad’s forces.
“In less than 50 weapons, we were able to achieve complete domination. It has not happened before,” he remarked, crediting IAF planners and mission executors for the success.
The operation was launched on May 7 in retaliation to the Pahalgam terror attack, with the IAF targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan-controlled territories. The strikes triggered four days of clashes that ended only after Pakistan requested a cessation of hostilities on May 10.
Air Marshal Tiwari, who played a critical role in the mission, noted that some of the Pakistani targets neutralised had not even been struck during the 1971 war. “We made every weapon count, and that reflects the capability of our planning and execution,” he said.
Detailing the sequence of events, he said India initially kept its response “calibrated,” restricting strikes to terror infrastructure and military targets. But after Pakistan’s retaliation on the night of May 9–10, the IAF expanded its operations to send a strong message.
The Vice Chief also emphasized the challenges of precision strikes with long-range vectors. “The longer the vector, the higher the risk of collateral damage. Yet, our team ensured every target was hit accurately, with zero collateral damage,” he said, acknowledging both the pilots and the teams on the ground.
India later conveyed to Pakistan that its actions were aimed only at terror bases and not at escalating conflict, but after Islamabad’s military response, the IAF retaliated firmly.
