Key Points

In an interview to French magazine Challenges, Trappier said: "What Pakistan is claiming about downing three Rafales is simply not true."

He made it clear that Dassault, the French company that manufactures the Rafale, has received no official communication from the Indian Air Force indicating any such losses. "What we already know is that what the Pakistanis are saying about destroying three Rafale planes is inaccurate," Trappier said.

"When the complete details are known, the reality may surprise many," he added.

In the interview just ahead of the Paris Air Show, Trappier highlighted the formidable reputation of the Rafale as a premier multirole fighter jet. "If you want a single aircraft capable of air-to-air combat, reconnaissance, ground strikes, nuclear deterrence, and aircraft carrier deployment, Rafale is unmatched," he asserted.

While acknowledging the stealth advantage of the American F-22, he maintained that the Rafale is superior to the F-35 in real-world versatility and performance. "It's far better than anything China currently offers," he contended.

India has already denied that any of its fighter jets were destroyed during Operation Sindoor, which had successfully demolished terror infrastructure with precision bombing deep inside Pakistan territory. This was followed by missile attacks that caused considerable damage to key bases of the Pakistani Air Force.

Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif had earlier claimed that Pakistani forces downed five Indian aircraft, including three Rafales, and captured Indian soldiers during a retaliatory attack following India's airstrikes during Operation Sindoor. However, it has not released any evidence to support these claims.

Defence analysts have dismissed the Pakistani narrative as sheer propaganda, which is in tune with the country's playbook, as has been the experience in the past.

India had launched Operation Sindoor in retaliation for the Pakistan-sponsored terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in which 26 tourists were massacred.

- IANS