A video claiming to show Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, the Chief of the Air Staff, “admitting” that India lost six jets and a drone during the recent conflict with Pakistan has surfaced online.
Multiple X users shared the video alleging, “Finally Indian Airforce Chief admits India did lose 6 Jets and one Heron UAV during May 7th Air engagements.” Newschecker, however, found the claim to be untrue.
In the video, the Air Force Chief is purportedly heard saying, “… And here that hangar which is, one half of the hangar is gone. And I am sure there were some aircraft inside which got damaged there. So, if I can just sum it up, while we did lose six jets and one large Heron drone,we were able to get there at least two command and control centres…”
Screengrab from X post by @InsiderWBSuch posts can be seen here, here and here.
‘Let’s Count Jets’ – Old Images Falsely Shared As Pakistan Showing ‘Intact’ Fleet After IAF Chief Says 6 PAF Planes Downed
Fact Check/Verification
A keyword search for “IAF Chief,” and “India lost six jets” on Google did not yield any credible reports on the purported remark by Air Chief Marshal AP Singh. The social media handles associated with the Air Force (seen here, here and here), too, did not carry any information substantiating the viral clip of damage to Indian equipment during Operation Sindoor.
We then conducted a reverse image search on the keyframes of the viral clip which directed us to a YouTube post by ANI Bharat featuring the full address by Air Chief Marshal AP Singh at the 16th Air Chief Marshal LM Katre Memorial Lecture, live streamed on August 9, 2025. It showed the Air Force Chief in the same background as seen in the viral clip.
During the same, the Defence official also shared the before-and-after images of Pakistani airbases targeted by Indian forces. Around 23 minutes into the video, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh is heard saying, “…that is Shahbaz, their Jacobabad airfield, one of them again, a major airfield that was attacked. And here there is an F-16 hangar, which you can see here. And here this is the photograph, again from open source, from one of their earlier picture of the same hangar. And here that hangar which is, one half of the hangar is gone.”
Screengrab from YouTube video by ANI Bharat”And I am sure there were some aircraft inside which have got damaged there. So, if I can just sum it up, we were able to get there at least two command and control centres like Murid and Chaklala that I have shown you one of the pictures..”
This segment of his speech did not carry any details on the alleged losses to India, contradicting the viral footage.
Air Chief Marshal Singh’s address at the event was also live streamed on the YouTube channel of The Hindu on August 9, 2025. The above mentioned segment can be seen at the counters of 29:08 minutes in the video. This live stream too did not show admitting to the alleged loss of Indian jets, thereby confirming that the fabricated remark was interspersed in his speech to make the false claim.
A release by the Ministry of Defence on the 16th Air Chief Marshal LM Katre Memorial Lecture, too, did not mention any such announcement by the Air Chief Marshal Singh.
Screengrabs from PIB website “Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, Chief of the Air Staff lauded Op Sindoor’s success, stressing Air Power’s primacy & the need for indigenisation, R&D, jointness & synergy for future strength,” stated an X post by the
, sharing photos from the event.
Furthermore, on carefully analysing the viral video, we spotted a noticeable change in the voice from segment 0:33-0:36 minutes, where the alleged remark about India losing six jets is heard.
We then looked up the segment on audio AI detection platform Resemble AI, which termed the voice as “fake.”
The Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU) of the Misinformation Combat Alliance (MCA), which includes Newschecker, also analysed the clip. The DAU analysed the footage on Hive’s deepfake video detection tool which highlighted several markers of AI manipulation in the video track. Hive’s audio tool, however, did not indicate that any portion of the audio track was AI generated.
Screengrab from Hive tool
Newschecker has previously debunked similar manipulated videos of top Defence officials, falsely showing them as admitting to the loss of military assets during the May 2025 escalation with Pakistan. Our fact checks can be seen here, and .
Conclusion
Hence, we find that the viral footage, claiming to show the Indian Air Force Chief admitting to loss of six jets during Operation Sindoor, is manipulated.
Sources
YouTube Video By ANI Bharat, Dated August 9, 2025
YouTube Video By The Hindu, Dated August 9, 2025
Release By Ministry Of Defence, Dated August 9, 2025
Resemble AI Website
DAU Analysis