Decoding the Efforts to Diminish S-400 and BrahMos in Operation Sindoor

After India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting nine terrorist sites in Pakistan in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack, Pakistani media sought to discredit India's high-tech weapons, including the Russian-acquired S-400 air defence system and the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile — the world's fastest in its class and a Indo-Russian joint venture.

Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the top official of Pakistan's military media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), recently stated that BrahMos facilities, responsible for launching missiles into Pakistan and causing civilian casualties, were destroyed. He also mentioned that the S-400 battery systems at Udhampur and Bhuj were targeted by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF).

India, however, was quick to dismiss those claims.

"Pakistan claimed that it damaged our S-400 and BrahMos missile base with its JF-17, which is completely wrong," Indian Army's Colonel Sofiya Qureshi said during a Ministry of Defence (MoD) media briefing following the announcement of a ceasefire.

Chaudhary's statement seemed to overlook the actual location of India's S-400 deployment. While he claimed that PAF jets targeted the Russian-built system in Udhampur, the S-400 is actually stationed at Adampur in Punjab.

Interestingly, Pakistan's claims were busted not only by the Indian Armed Forces but also by OSINT and satellite pictures.

"Imagery released by a Chinese firm suggests damage at a structure within India's Adampur Airbase — a site targeted by Pakistan, however, when cross-referenced with older imagery, the damage predates current incidents & is visible in March 2025 as well," wrote OSINT analyst Damien Symon on X.

Pakistani claims were also refuted by an Indian Air Force (IAF) veteran, who described them as "laughable".

"The JF-17's electronic warfare kit is outdated and primitive, and under no circumstances it can jam the acquisition radar or the missile guidance radar of the S-400. Definitely, none of India's S-400 platforms have been hit by Pakistan's drones, UCAPs, or missiles during Operation Sindoor," retired Group Captain Uttam Kumar Devnath told Sputnik India.

The military pundit even exhorted the global media to visit the concerned sites to see for themselves that all such Indian systems were operational, suffering no damage at all from Pakistan's alleged strikes.

Furthermore, there have been serious questions about Pakistan's ability to track down the BrahMos, especially after OSINT and satellite pictures confirmed that the Indian Air Force's (IAF) precision strikes on Pakistan's military bases had indeed inflicted heavy damage to their air defences and radar installations.

Although the Indian military hasn't commented on the use of the supersonic missile in Operation Sindoor, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath confirmed it on Sunday during a public address while inaugurating a BrahMos production unit in Lucknow.

"You must have seen a glimpse of the BrahMos missile during Operation Sindoor. If you didn't, then just ask the people of Pakistan about the power of the BrahMos missile," Adityanath said.

During Operation Sindoor, the IAF struck targets more than 165 kilometers inside Pakistan using air-launched cruise missiles (ALCMs), according to Open Source Intelligence data. One of the ALCMs used in the attack appears to have been the BrahMos-A, with a picture of its booster circulating on social media.

"Pakistan has not claimed the successful interception of a single Indian cruise missile—neither the BrahMos-A nor the SCALP. Although Pakistani authorities asserted that 'most' incoming missiles were intercepted during the May 7 strikes, this claim is undermined by extensive photo and video evidence released by the IAF, showing severe damage to high-value targets in Bahawalpur and Muridke," former fighter jet pilot Vijainder Thakur, one of India's prominent defence experts, said on social media.

In addition, India appears to have targeted a dozen Pakistani military bases and radar sites, causing significant damage. The Pakistani military installations attacked by the IAF using precision munitions (likely BrahMos) reportedly included Rafiqui (Shorkot, Jhang), Murid (Chakwal), Nur Khan (Chaklala, Rawalpindi), Rahim Yar Khan, Sukkur, Chunian (Kasur), Skardu, Bholari, Jacobabad, Pasrur, and Sialkot.

The extensive damage caused to these sites was confirmed by OSINT specialists as well as satellite imagery.

"Overlaying an image released by the Indian firm (KAWASPACE) over yesterday's LANDSAT image spotlights damage at Pakistan's Sargodha Airbase — the Indian Air Force strike appears to have hit runway 14/32 at two locations — one of those is near the intersection with runway 06/24," Symon noted.

Referring to imagery from the Chinese satellite firm MIZAZVISION, he added that the IAF's precision strike on Pakistan's Nur Khan Airbase targeted infrastructure and ground support vehicles.

Pakistan's attempts to undermine the credibility of the BrahMos and S-400 have backfired, as these statements lacked factual basis and were primarily intended for a domestic audience, Devnath concluded.

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