Two weeks after two low-intensity blasts took place inside the technical area of the Air Force Station in Jammu, it has now come to light that the attack was carried out by Pakistan using Chinese-made drones.
It is pertinent to note that a forensic investigation into the drone attack has revealed on Monday (July 5) that the drone was made in China and the Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) used were made with a mixture of RDX and Nitrate.
Reportedly, Pakistan has been showing keen interest in drone technology for the past 2-3 months. Meanwhile, China and Turkey are also supplying drones to the county. On April 15, a long discussion was held between Minister of Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry and the President of the Chinese Company Da Jiang Innovations (DJI). The Pakistani government had then laid a proposal for the mass production of drones. Following the deliberations, a team of Pakistani Navy, Amry, and Air Force visited Air Defense institutions in China between May 22 and July 6. The team closely studied the Advanced High to Medium Altitude Air Defense System (HIMADS).
HIMADS is likely to protect Pakistan during an attack such as that in Balakot. Between May 31 and June 11, the Pakistani Army officials visited the factory of Turkish drone manufacturer Bayraktar and proposed the joint production of two drones. The drone can hover in the air for 24 hours at a height of 22,5000 ft and can send footage of objects up to 150 km away. It must be mentioned that Pakistan had tested firing a missile from a UAV S 250 in the last week of June. The purpose of the missile test was to spy in the Indian territory near the border of Pakistan and file a report about the use and deployment of S-250 by June 20.
Pakistan will soon test the Burq Laser Guided Missile from the fighter Burak drone. Reportedly, the Burak done was developed by Pakistan Air Force and National Engineering and Scientific Commission (NESCOM). It was first put to use in March 2015 and often speculated to have been used by the Pakistani army against its own civilians in the Khyber region. Pakistan is also planning to buy the ARTOS Systems from Germany to protect itself from drone attacks as it has the ability to monitor the movement of drones and navigation jamming capabilities.
Drone attack was carried out to target IAF’s strategic assets
On June 27, the Indian Air Force tweeted that two low-intensity explosions took place in the technical area of Jammu Air Force Station. The blasts took place at around 1:42 AM on Sunday and were so powerful they could be heard till 1 km distance. The drone dropped the bombs at a location close to the Helicopter hangar. The IAF suspected that these attacks were intended to target the strategic assets of the Indian Air Force located inside the airbase.
However, the forces managed to intercept and thwart the second attack minimizing the damage successfully. The other blast caused minor damage to the roof of a building while the other exploded in an open area. There was no damage to any equipment, the IAF said. The Indian Air Force had begun an investigation into the matter is in progress along with civil agencies. The technical area was sealed.
