Pressler Who? [FICTIONAL] Pakistan-India Air Combat 1998-99

[SQ8]

This hypothetical idea came to me after reading the F-16 Saga for the PAF through the PAF's official history till 2008. The nuclear journey along with the winding down of the Afghan war is really what killed the F-16s for Pakistan but what if?

WHAT IF ORBAT?
What if as the Soviet Union withdrew but the collapse did not happen till 1995 with them opting to only release East Germany for reunification and still supporting the Afghan government with arms- the Afghan war continues and Pakistan is still supported in some way. In addition, while Bill Clinton does come to power he doesn't ride a democratic landslide and republicans still control a lot of the house and senate who still have a soft corner for Pakistan. Pakistan's nuclear program continues but very slowly so that by 1998 it has only 1-2 test units and not an operational arsenal or delivery systems.

Pakistan is able to procure additional F-16s and opts to change its follow up order for F-16s to F-16 block 32s including purchasing E-2Cs and eventually making a final purchase of F-16 Block 40s released with KC-135Es from EDA articles and new build C-130H-IIs to grow the transport fleet and make up for attrition that are delivered by 1997 under the guarantee that Pakistan will not go nuclear.
This allows the PAF to retire the oldest Mirages instead of seeking upgrades keeping only Mirage Vs for strike and maritime support duties.

The remaining PAF Fleet is composed of F-7P and MP skybolts that form the interceptor core. In addition, the PAF also opts to purchase 2 odd I-Hawk SAMs to keep near Mushaf and Masroor.

What emerges is a fleet of:
54 F-16 A/Bs, 32 F-16C block 32s and 32 F-16C block 42s for a total of 118 F-16s
106 F-7P/MP SkyBolts
50 Mirage VPA/PA2/PA3/D
for a total of 274 combat aircraft
and
4 E-2C group 1 Hawkeyes
4 KC-135E

These are distributed at:

In 1990 the USAF delivered AIM-7M -III Sparrows for the F-16Block 32s giving the PAF its first BVR capability - the F-16A do have the ability to use them as well but the limited stock(100) is kept focused in the north. It was only with the purchase of the F-16 Block-40s that some 300 AIM-120As have been delivered giving the PAF a massive edge over India with key US congressmen and the Indians protesting vehemently. This was only narrowly approved by a small republican/democrat majority under the underwritten clause that Pakistan will only use Nuclear power for civilian purposes.

As these developments were underway, India was not going to let itself be completely outpaced by Pakistan and even as preparations for the Pokhran-II test were underway the Indian fleet had been steadily grown and upgraded. A Bison upgrade was underway giving 3 squadrons of the Mig-21s Kopyo Radar and new R-77 use. 2 additional squadrons of Mig-29C(M) were purchased to augment the A(M) models in service with the former capable of employing the AA-10 and R-77 missile. 2 squadrons of Mig-23s were also upgraded to Mig-23MLD standard and an order had been placed with the French for Mirage 2000-5s making India the launch customer that led to an Indian fleet still having very potent numbers of technologically advanced aircraft. Finally, the USSR delivered recently completed A-50M systems equipped with the Soviet Mainstay radar systems that let India have a fleet of

68 Mig-29A/C
70 Mig-23 BN/MF/MLD
142 Mig-21MF/Bison
68 Mig-27M
104 Jaguar IS/IT/IM
54 Mirage 2000H/TH +18 Mirage 2000-5
for a total of 522 combat aircraft.

While a very potent fleet, the F-16s are still considered a very serious threat especially in A2A combat and the IAF remains a little nervous about its exchange ratio in an air war but assures its leadership that if push comes to shove it will be able to keep the PAF at bay.

Pre-Scenario:
After India conducts the Pokran-II tests there is pandemonium within Pakistani leadership. The test devices need another 8 months to have enough test data and enriched uranium available to reply with massive pressure coming in from western leadership to not proceed further with the United States threatening sanctions if Pakistan conducts a test. On the Indian side, this reality has given them the idea of launching a Siachen+ operation aimed at cutting off some pakistani infiltration that was seen in both the Kargil Drass sector and recent beheadings on the LoC. With the nuclear overhang the Hindu-nationalist BJP leadership is being goaded by its lower constituents to shore up areas of Pakistan which are seen as a threat to any future Kashmir operations and then use the expected international peace intervention to settle the Kashmir dispute with a much more favorable position for India.

As intelligence on these debates in India reaches Pakistan, certain military leaders decide to preempt the Indians by launching their own operation to take key Kashmir areas.



Goal: I want to see how the non-pressler PAF would perform and most importantly impact the outcome of a Kargil like conflict especially being able to go toe-to-toe with the Top A2A fighter in the Mig-29 and the M2k-5. How would that change the equation for IAF air support across the LoC and Kashmir and if that would force the conflict to escalate and spill into an all out conflict especially without nuclear weapons preventing it.


More to come......

 

[Bilal Khan (Quwa)]

This hypothetical idea came to me after reading the F-16 Saga for the PAF through the PAF's official history till 2008. The nuclear journey along with the winding down of the Afghan war is really what killed the F-16s for Pakistan but what if?

WHAT IF ORBAT?
What if as the Soviet Union withdrew but the collapse did not happen till 1995 with them opting to only release East Germany for reunification and still supporting the Afghan government with arms- the Afghan war continues and Pakistan is still supported in some way. In addition, while Bill Clinton does come to power he doesn't ride a democratic landslide and republicans still control a lot of the house and senate who still have a soft corner for Pakistan. Pakistan's nuclear program continues but very slowly so that by 1998 it has only 1-2 test units and not an operational arsenal or delivery systems.

Pakistan is able to procure additional F-16s and opts to change its follow up order for F-16s to F-16 block 32s including purchasing E-2Cs and eventually making a final purchase of F-16 Block 40s released with KC-135Es from EDA articles and new build C-130H-IIs to grow the transport fleet and make up for attrition that are delivered by 1997 under the guarantee that Pakistan will not go nuclear.
This allows the PAF to retire the oldest Mirages instead of seeking upgrades keeping only Mirage Vs for strike and maritime support duties.

The remaining PAF Fleet is composed of F-7P and MP skybolts that form the interceptor core. In addition, the PAF also opts to purchase 2 odd I-Hawk SAMs to keep near Mushaf and Masroor.

What emerges is a fleet of:
54 F-16 A/Bs, 32 F-16C block 32s and 32 F-16C block 42s for a total of 118 F-16s
106 F-7P/MP SkyBolts
50 Mirage VPA/PA2/PA3/D
for a total of 274 combat aircraft
and
4 E-2C group 1 Hawkeyes
4 KC-135E

These are distributed at:
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In 1990 the USAF delivered AIM-7M -III Sparrows for the F-16Block 32s giving the PAF its first BVR capability - the F-16A do have the ability to use them as well but the limited stock(100) is kept focused in the north. It was only with the purchase of the F-16 Block-40s that some 300 AIM-120As have been delivered giving the PAF a massive edge over India with key US congressmen and the Indians protesting vehemently. This was only narrowly approved by a small republican/democrat majority under the underwritten clause that Pakistan will only use Nuclear power for civilian purposes.

As these developments were underway, India was not going to let itself be completely outpaced by Pakistan and even as preparations for the Pokhran-II test were underway the Indian fleet had been steadily grown and upgraded. A Bison upgrade was underway giving 3 squadrons of the Mig-21s Kopyo Radar and new R-77 use. 2 additional squadrons of Mig-29C(M) were purchased to augment the A(M) models in service with the former capable of employing the AA-10 and R-77 missile. 2 squadrons of Mig-23s were also upgraded to Mig-23MLD standard that led to an Indian fleet still having very potent numbers of technologically advanced aircraft. Finally, the USSR delivered recently completed A-50M systems equipped with the Soviet Mainstay radar systems that let India have a fleet of

68 Mig-29A/C
70 Mig-23 BN/MF/MLD
142 Mig-21MF/Bison
68 Mig-27M
104 Jaguar IS/IT/IM
54 Mirage 2000H/TH
for a total of 504 combat aircraft.

While a very potent fleet, the F-16s are still considered a very serious threat especially in A2A combat and the IAF remains a little nervous about its exchange ratio in an air war but assures its leadership that if push comes to shove it will be able to keep the PAF at bay.

Pre-Scenario:
After India conducts the Pokran-II tests there is pandemonium within Pakistani leadership. The test devices need another 8 months to have enough test data and enriched uranium available to reply with massive pressure coming in from western leadership to not proceed further with the United States threatening sanctions if Pakistan conducts a test. On the Indian side, this reality has given them the idea of launching a Siachen+ operation aimed at cutting off some pakistani infiltration that was seen in both the Kargil Drass sector and recent beheadings on the LoC. With the nuclear overhang the Hindu-nationalist BJP leadership is being goaded by its lower constituents to shore up areas of Pakistan which are seen as a threat to any future Kashmir operations and then use the expected international peace intervention to settle the Kashmir dispute with a much more favorable position for India.

As intelligence on these debates in India reaches Pakistan, certain military leaders decide to preempt the Indians by launching their own operation to take key Kashmir areas.



Goal: I want to see how the non-pressler PAF would perform and most importantly impact the outcome of a Kargil like conflict especially being able to go toe-to-toe with the Top A2A fighter in the Mig-29. How would that change the equation for IAF air support across the LoC and Kashmir and if that would force the conflict to escalate and spill into an all out conflict especially without nuclear weapons preventing it.


More to come......

Just some additional details on the side. Due to the uncertainty around the Soviets, Pakistan would still receive military aid. As a result, the sale of 4-6 Type 23 frigates from the UK to the PN would go through. This is important as the Type 23s would've enabled the PN to maintain its 30-40 km-range AAW element (which it lost when it returned the US FFGs). Additional Lynx ASW choppers would've come through as well. The PN would also continue its SSK growth, but with the Type 209 or Kockums SSKs instead of the Agosta 90B (as DCNS was the only available supplier during Pressler).

Likewise, the PAA also succeeded in acquiring the 40 follow-on AH-1F (bringing its total fleet to 60) and started assembling UH-1s under license as originally intended. Thus, Pakistan's air mobility and CAS capabilities are also at a much higher level. In fact, the larger AH-1 and UH-1 fleet allowed the PAA to send units overseas for various UN missions. Thus, the PAA is now an experienced air operations force in its own right. Finally, the continued availability of US aid also simplified the PA's armour program where it bought surplus German Leopard 1s and/or new Abrams MBTs in lieu of the al-Khalid program.

Finally, the PAF likely took delivery of Hawk SAMs too.

Some political side-commentary too (for flare)... The US still continued providing aid to Pakistan due to the uncertainty of the Soviets. As a result, the Nawaz Sharif government was able to leverage early economic windfalls (thanks to aid) that cemented his popularity at a critical point. Feeling good about himself, Nawaz Sharif took the advice of economic advisors and steered aid use to encourage private enterprise growth, attract FDI, etc. As a result, Pakistan's political situation is stable and its economy is in an upswing, though Ittefaq Industries is also the #1 industrial conglomerate of the country. The US is banking on this to discourage Pakistan from nuclear weapons.

 

[SQ8]

Just some additional details on the side. Due to the uncertainty around the Soviets, Pakistan would still receive military aid. As a result, the sale of 4-6 Type 23 frigates from the UK to the PN would go through. This is important as the Type 23s would've enabled the PN to maintain its 30-40 km-range AAW element (which it lost when it returned the US FFGs). Additional Lynx ASW choppers would've come through as well. The PN would also continue its SSK growth, but with the Type 209 or Kockums SSKs instead of the Agosta 90B (as DCNS was the only available supplier during Pressler).

Likewise, the PAA also succeeded in acquiring the 40 follow-on AH-1F (bringing its total fleet to 60) and started assembling UH-1s under license as originally intended. Thus, Pakistan's air mobility and CAS capabilities are also at a much higher level. In fact, the larger AH-1 and UH-1 fleet allowed the PAA to send units overseas for various UN missions. Thus, the PAA is now an experienced air operations force in its own right. Finally, the continued availability of US aid also simplified the PA's armour program where it bought surplus German Leopard 1s and/or new Abrams MBTs in lieu of the al-Khalid program.

Finally, the PAF likely took delivery of Hawk SAMs too.

Some political side-commentary too (for flare)... The US still continued providing aid to Pakistan due to the uncertainty of the Soviets. As a result, the Nawaz Sharif government was able to leverage early economic windfalls (thanks to aid) that cemented his popularity at a critical point. Feeling good about himself, Nawaz Sharif took the advice of economic advisors and steered aid use to encourage private enterprise growth, attract FDI, etc. As a result, Pakistan's political situation is stable and its economy is in an upswing, though Ittefaq Industries is also the #1 industrial conglomerate of the country. The US is banking on this to discourage Pakistan from nuclear weapons.

I am leading this to Kargil but with a twist - will post the follow up in a bit. Have included the additional AH-1Fs and C-Nite variants

 

[Tejas Spokesman]

If Pakistan got another 80 odd F-16 incl Block 40s, India would have definitely ordered atleast another 80 Mirage 2000s instead of carrying out Mig-23 upgrades.
Its is IAF's policy since 1990s to maintain atelast a 2:1 ratio over PAF in terms of 4th gen fighter fleet strength, so to expect that IAF will keep only 124 of 4th gen jets in comparison to PAF's 118 is fallacy.

 

[Super Falcon]

Pak should have opted for F 15s than F 7pg in numbers if 50 f 15 been bought would have advantage over iaf even today

 

[TsAr]

Pak should have opted for F 15s than F 7pg in numbers if 50 f 15 been bought would have advantage over iaf even today

why are you ruining this thread, please stay out if you don't have anything substantial to add.

 

[Super Falcon]

why are you ruining this thread, please stay out if you don't have anything substantial to add.

What are u adding its fictional dont u see

 

[untitled]

With the Soviet threat still alive, wouldn't the Americans have insisted that most of our F-16 fleet be facing northwards, towards Afghanistan?

 

[SQ8]

28th September 1999:

Elements of the Indian army are now starting to build up as reports of infiltrators being Pak Army regulars are coming to light and the primary Kashmir artery under constant artillery and even some heavy mortar fire from enemy groups.
The Pakistani foreign office continues to insists these are just local freedom fighters but the initial resistance encountered by Indian Army units and causalities taken clearly point to well trained troops.
After taking heavy initial causalities Indian troops are now slowly advancing up the mountains under cover from light and medium artillery pieces - many of which were lost as the vehecles bringing them up were accurately targeted by artillery fire.
Some heavy artillery pieces were meticulously airlifted by 126sq into the sector amid unconfirmed reports of seeing surface to air missiles in the area.
The Indian government is putting a hiatus on recent talks with Pakistan even as mixed messages keep coming from Islamabad regarding the ground situation in Kargil.
RAW has obtained intelligence via Iran on a massive build up at Skardu AB of men and material which has left leadership surprised so the defense minister in consultation with the PM has authorized the IAF to undertake a close air support to both provide some impetus to the Indian army and send a message.
Yesterday a Chetak nearly survived what seemed like a surface to air missile so today a newly air freighted Israeli Aircraft Industries Searcher UAV system has been put to use with some manufacturer support staff in country -

As the first close air support missions for the IAF are cleared - clear guidelines are provided to not cross the LoC as reports of Pakistani combat air patrols

As part of the mobilization plans the IAF is looking to move squadrons of Mirage 2000H aircraft to Halwara while Mig-29Cs from IAFS Bikaner will deploy to Leh and Pathankot.
But as this is underway around 14:30 Hours a flight of 4 Mig-27M from Adampur based 220sq escorted by a flight of Mig-21Bison from Pathankot are tasked with attacking Pakistani positions near the Dras and Hulyai area.

They have planned to use very tight attack patterns that leave little room from maneuvering as any violations of the LoC could invite Pakistani interceptors and lead to escalation that the Indian leadership wants to avoid.. for now.

As they approach the target area they are alerted by Indian Air Defense of a Pakistani CAP in the area that is flying fairly close.
Choosing to keep a low profile, IAF HQ decides not to scramble Mig-21 bisons out of Srinagar to alert the PAF aircraft, likely suspected to be F-16s from Kamra based 5sq which have recently been provided the very deadly AIM-120A missile.

From thje Pakistani side, they detect this Indian flight going through but since the army hasnt provided any idea of Pakistani troops in danger so the CAP continues on its course albeit with some rookie pilot drifting too close to the LoC.

As the Migs roar into the attack - to their surprise they are met with a smoke streak telling of a SAM launch. Dispensing flares they keep their formation and the 2nd flight decides to use its 57mm rockets at the origin of the SAM itself.

In the first pass two Pakistani positions are hit and badly damaged along with the suspected SAM site(later confirmed to be a ANZA 2 unit) blown to smithereens.
However, as they turn in again for a second run another SAM is seen lifting off the adjacent peak - making the leader think every peak is a SAM site.

The flight manages to dodge this as well and continues to attack the positions but making sure to not violate the LoC (Slighty impressed that the "AI" rules in the sim was able to keep within turning parameters of the Mig-27 and still not violate the "LOC")

But every other peak does seem to come alive with SAMs in the air and these look to be more accurate - was IAF Intelligence mistaken in thinking the best the Pakistanis had up there was DsHK grade small arms AAA?

The FIM-92 Stinger is considered to have been the turning point for the mujahideen in the Afghan war, in this case leftover stock from the Afghan war was about to connect with a IAF Mig-27.

As the Mig-27s made their third pass - two Stingers found their mark with both #2&3 brought down. The remainder of the flight returned to base as the reports of pilots downed and captured starting flooding in.
The Indian leadership was furious and doubled the efforts to get men and material on site while looking for options on how to handle CAS without putting pilots at risk.
Luckily an existing but delayed upgrade program was to give the Mirage-2000s a precision punch and it was decided to expedite the program to bring in online within 2 weeks.


Notes: Primary arranged as a way to test the adherence to the LoC, this also mirrored the initial IAF support during the Kargil war with similar results as well.

 

[SQ8]

If Pakistan got another 80 odd F-16 incl Block 40s, India would have definitely ordered atleast another 80 Mirage 2000s instead of carrying out Mig-23 upgrades.
Its is IAF's policy since 1990s to maintain atelast a 2:1 ratio over PAF in terms of 4th gen fighter fleet strength, so to expect that IAF will keep only 124 of 4th gen jets in comparison to PAF's 118 is fallacy.

Mig-29s are 4th generation aircraft
80 of them with 70 mirages is 2:1 in favor of IAF

 

[Shabi1]

With soviets still in Afghanistan I doubt US would have allowed full conflict between India and Pakistan to brew up as Pakistan would have been facing a two front war. Would have sent it's fleet in the region this time to deescalate the situation so Pakistan remains committed to tackling its western border only. I suspect Khalistan movement would have continued and the Mujahedeen would be very active in Kashmir so India would still have its own problems to deal with.

At most we could have had a Kargil like low intensity situation but Pakistan able to sustain it long enough so India willing to sit on the negotiation table and reach a impasse like with China in Ladakh.

Economically perhaps we would have been more stable but there would have been further inflow of refugees and proxies from Afghanistan and a whole set of other different problems. I think our economy would have been like Turkey right now, its good and bad at the same time.

However all in all I think Pressler sanctions were a blessing for Pakistan, US would have left us eventually or we would have been at the losing end with Soviets winning the cold war. No Pressler would have just delayed the inevitable. We are finally on the right track, with decent terms with all camps.

I suspect we might have a conflict with India 2023-24 when they have elections and would prefer today parity of Pakistan vs India compared to 1998 no pressler parity of Pakistan vs India.

Mig-29s are 4th generation aircraft
80 of them with 70 mirages is 2:1 in favor of IAF

With E2C AWACs in 1998 as force multipliers PAF would have had a edge over India in situational awareness and we would have had a BVRs by then to counter newer soviet threats too, I think India got its much later than that 2004-2009.

 

[SQ8]

2nd October 1999 -

The IAF's attacks are starting to bear fruit as much as the technical airspace violations are getting more brazen in an attempt to dislodge the Pakistani forces on the peaks. Words of conflict are flying back and forth on the diplomatic front as the Indian airbases in the north are abuzz with a large number of air assets including Gwalior bases Mirage 2000s now armed with brand new precision guided weapons.

The IAF has been actively utilizing the A-50 systems even with their mixed performance in the mountain terrain as they provide great coverage of PAF activities and allow timing air attacks on the infiltrators much more efficiently. They are however being used to a point where the spares stock has been running low and the 2 systems are running close to their MTBO times for their radar systems - the future points to using the Israeli radar from the Chilean Condor AEW variant on the il-76 while negotiations are also being conducted with the Swedes for their Erieye radar but for now the Mainstays truly are being the mainstay of agile IAF Operations.

Today a flight of Mirage 2000s will be hitting positions further north where a Pakistani FoB is supposedly established - it is a mission like before that may lead to a violation of the LoC but the government is confident that the Pakistanis will not escalate and are more focused on trying to hold their recent gains to get some favorable retreat terms under US auspices. In either case, IAF Mig-29Cs are providing cover armed to the teeth with R-27ERs along with Bisons from Srinagar with their R-77s - it would be expensive for the Pakistanis to request air cover even if it doesn't lead to worse escalations.

The A-50 from 50sq will continue its stoic duty of providing AEW coverage to the ingressing IAF strike package as it carefully monitors at least 2 Pakistani patrols and possibly a Pakistani AEW system in the air as well.

On the Pakistani side however, there is still confusion in terms of the scope of the conflict and what the actual strategic objectives are but the PAF has been activated to a near war level footing with regular combat air patrols even as Washington has been sending mixed messages in terms of support for additional spares and logistics on the ground.
Air Staff have decided to ration the latest block-40s and instead rely on the Block-32s and Block-15s for CAPs whilst keeping F-7s on alert at Skardu for any violations in their manned SAM role. The 3sq E-2Cs have been vital to pick up Indian formations leaving their air bases for strikes and the PA has reluctantly agreed to have PAF liaisons embedded with some of their forward command to coordinate some air defense for what looks to be a casualty filled situation with one report talking of blood stained PA helicopters making round upon round of CMH Murree and even the Chinar Golf course in Bhurban ending up as a casualty collection point.

As panic seems to be setting in the leadership of the Pakistan army they now look to the PAF to provide air support as reports of the IA firing a few blowpipe SAMS at a resupply chopper from a peak they have captured from Pakistan have their AD plan of Stingers at every peak not looking so bright. Privately, it seems some rapprochement with international brokers is in order but behind the scenes there has been hectic activity at a site in Balochistan with the centrifuges at a nuclear plant working overtime.

The Mirage strike force is moving towards its target as a PAF block 15 flight conducts patrols near the Shakargarh bulge they find themselves painted repeatedly by the radar of an Indian Mig-29C on the opposite side. This has been the normal routine for the past 48 hours as both sides keep tabs on each others movements very closely,

As the IAF 7sq fighters deliver their payload they inadvertently go further into the LoC more than the usual technical violations - In response and out of caution the PAF decides to scramble F-7Ps from the 20sq detachment at Skardu to intercept and perhaps diplomatically deter.

At the same time, an odd occurrence happens when an Indian Mig-29 flight in its usual lock on tete-a-tete with Pakistani aircraft makes a technical violation. Normally these are being overlooked but the critical sector in which is occurs causes the F-16s patrolling nearby to drop tanks under the assumption that the Indians may have wind of supposedly classified developments happening in the area.

As the second Mirage package was turning in for releasing their bombs the proximity of the F-7Ps to this group prompted the IAF command to take the unprecedented step and provide in pre-coded messages interception and weapons free authorization upon guard warning to a Mig-21 flight near this area.
It is not clear what was misinterpreted by the Mig-21 flight but it construed this as an order to engage all Pakistani aircraft in its purview and promptly launched R-77s at both the F-7Ps and a patrol of a F-16block 40.

The block-40 F-16s are some of the best equipped with self defense systems and their avionics were already talking of a lock but they were expecting the same dance as before - not the warning bells of a missile launch. Their immediate alert and move to evasive rungs its own alarm bells to the PAF Air Defense controllers who authorized retaliatory weapons release when able.

The F-7s however only had a rudimentary missile warning system and only saw the R-77s when they had barely a second or so to react.

The wreckage of 2 F-7Ps was seen falling by the locals and the Pakistan Army who being both aware and part of the fracas at the LoC were initially jubilant thinking it was another Indian jet being shot down similar to the ones days before. It was to only later transpire to them what had really happened when they found one pilot and the other was never recovered until days later nearly frostbitten to death.

The Block-40s however were able to avoid the incoming R-77s and replied back with AIM-120s. One of the pilots was part of a batch training at Luke AFB and recalled his USAF Instructor telling him how this would make shooting down aircraft like clubbing baby seals - he was unaware of the reference until a Norwegian pilot on training at the same base vividly explained the metaphor.

The first bison flight came down in flames as the IAF Command immediately ordered another strike flight incoming of Mig-27s to pull back and ordered the nearby Mig-29A flight to engage whilst routing the Mig-29C flight down south to the same area.

However, as they were transmitting in code the Mig-29C flight misinterpreted the command and instead assumed it was the southern F-16 flight now near Shakargarh that had brought down its colleagues. As the northern Mig-29A flight lobbed R-27Rs at the F-16s and found AIM-120s being sent its way the Mig-29Cs instead roared across the international border to fire R-27ERs at the F-16s in the south.
These were only equipped with AIM-9L and newly bought M systems.

Able to dodge the R-27s but out of energy in the process they found themselves merging with Mig-29s and deadly R-73s. The F-16 wingman was unlucky enough to take a direct hit but the lead survived a close call. The Mig-29s however assumed the job was done and were turning to bug out when they found themselves facing AIM-9Ms. Both Migs fell near Gujranwala as their counterparts survived AIM-120s to retreat to their bases while additional PAF CAPs took to the air. Meanwhile the Pakistani Prime Minister's daily dose of Tikkas and Nehari was interrupted by military brass barging in.

Interesting that the F-16A/B vs Mig-29 90s combo is more evenly matched than the earlier simulation in which MKIs get mostly slapped around by AIM-120C F-16AMs. I know that the Mirage 2000s may be great in A2A but with them focused on LGB support I wonder how they would be used for CAPs with Magic IIs and R-530Fs?


Guess I will balance the scenario by adding a squadron of M2K-5s with MiCA-EMs which would make IAF the launch customer.

 

[Raja Porus]

Waiting for the next part

 

[SQ8]

roaming in Pakistan these days - rig is in

 

[Princeps Senatus]

@SQ8 looking to create a op swift retort scenario you in? i need help with orbat