by Vivek Ahuja
Khurana’s radio squawked with the chatter between the Phalcon controllers and the other group of four Su-30s now approaching the Aksai Chin…
OVER LADAKH
DAY 1 + 1810 HRS
The new set of four Su-30s, also from No. 17 Squadron, was now heading directly for the LAC. But they were not about to go straight into the kill-zones set up by Feng with the S-300s. These four aircraft were armed for a very specific job. And as such, they were not even going to enter the kill-zones over the Aksai Chin.
Each aircraft was armed with a single Brahmos Block-I ALCM under their fuselage pylon specially modified for this role. The four aircraft were spread out in line abreast formation and were barely a thousand feet above the peaks of the Ladakh Mountains below as they streaked towards the border. Just beyond the Chinese fuzzy detection range of the S-300 radars, the aircrafts accelerated to very high subsonic speeds and punched off their deadly cargo. The long tube shaped missiles fell cleanly off the four aircraft and ignited their motors…
By this time the four aircraft were already pulling tight pitch-out man oeuvres and headed back out of the Chinese radar detection.
The targeting information had been fed to the missile on-board flight computers before the aircraft had left the airbase at Pathankot. And they had been launched from one-hundred-fifty kilometers out, allowing for a time-to-target of around two minutes. The four missiles streaked across the Ladakh peaks with a massive shockwave thunderclap following in their wake…
They were detected immediately after release by the Chinese radars in the Aksai Chin and multiple S-300 systems engaged the four inbound missiles. Even with the phenomenal speeds and low reaction times involved, the S-300 proved to be a worthy opponent. These systems had been placed east of the highway through the Aksai Chin only because of the clear line of sight the plains provided to the defenders. Feng had done his homework.
Once the Brahmos missiles cleared the peaks between Galwan River to the north and Mobdi-la peaks to the south, they had entered relatively clear terrain in full view of these deadly defenses. With more than a dozen interceptor missiles targeting the four inbound Brahmos missiles, losses were inevitable…
Two of the four Brahmos missiles were destroyed by several interceptor missile hits. The remaining two, however, streaked past the defenses and slammed into two Big-Bird radar systems for an S-300 battery in the central sector. The result explosions destroyed both radar systems completely, shutting down the anti-missile radar capability for that sector of the highway. But Feng had designed the system to be robust and had included overlap with other nearby batteries and redundant auxiliary radar systems that went active minutes after the primary ones went down.
Back on board the Phalcon, Verma noted that there had been a temporary shutdown of radar activity in the central sector of the Aksai Chin. But several minutes later it had closed up again as new radar sources coming online were tagged by the onboard EW sensors.
Unless the coverage of this network of air-defenses was reduced permanently, the IAF Jaguar strike aircraft Squadrons could not dare penetrate the Aksai Chin region to take out the PLA targets nor could other fighters go north and take the fight to the PLAAF. This tickle of the Chinese air-defenses had confirmed for the WAC operations staff that they were now facing a highly integrated air-ground defense system. And unless it was taken out, the Chinese possessed the initiative in the skies over Ladakh.
KASHGAR AIRBASE
SINKIANG AUTONOMOUS REGION
CHINA
DAY 1 + 1830 HRS
Feng smiled as he went over the data from the Indian attempts to break through his air-defenses. It had not been surgically clean: he had taken losses. Two battery radars had been lost, but they had been replaced with the redundant ones nearby. If the Indians kept up the pressure, he would run out of these precious radar systems and then the gaps that had been created would stay opened.
In the meantime however, the system was buying time for his side.
By forcing the Indians to stay south and over their own airspace, the initiative was handed to Zhigao and his pilots. Feng still considered Zhigao’s plan to be ill-advised at best. But seeing the results in his hands he could not help but wonder if the plan just might work out...
OVER THE TAKLIMAKAN DESERT
SOUTHWESTERN CHINA
DAY 1 + 1840 HRS
The last of the Su-27s dropped below the altitude of the patrolling H-6U tankers and accelerated south just as the sun dipped below the horizon to the west, casting a pink-red glow to the skies around. The thirty Su-27s from the 16TH Air Regiment of Zhigao’s 6TH Fighter Division were stacked in groups of ten each.
All thirty aircraft were well north of the border with India and even further from the prying radars of the Phalcon. All thirty fighter radars were on standby mode at the moment. Zhigao had committed his entire Su-27 force for this mission to the level that Feng had to divert incoming reinforcements from the northeast to take over the vital job of protecting the two KJ-2000s over the Taklimakan desert.
Fifty kilometers behind the Su-27 force now heading south, three H-6M cruise-missile carriers and a single HD-6 electronic warfare aircraft from the 36TH Bomber Division released four long-range cruise-missiles each. That had been the only aspect of the mission on which Zhigao had agreed with Feng. While Zhigao was thoroughly intent on engaging the Indian fighters over Ladakh head on, Feng had convinced him to use the upcoming battle as a distraction to push through his cruise-missiles to their targets unhindered. The Indian pilots had proven particularly adept in the past day in intercepting the high flying, low speed cruise-missiles being launched by the 36TH Bomber Division in this sector. To the point that Feng had scrapped all future missions until more effective tactics could be employed. But Zhigao’s plans had presented him the opportunity he needed.
And he intended to make full use of it.
OVER LADAKH
DAY 1 + 1900 HRS
Khurana looked through his HUD to see the two green horizontal rectangles being projected above the peaks to the west against a reddish twilight sky. The two Pakistani F-16s in front of him were now seventy-five kilometers west of the Siachen glacier and well within range of his R-77 missiles. But by the same token he was well within the range of the latter’s AMRAAMs. Further west, two more F-16s had been detected entering the skies from Skardu airbase. Given the extremely volatile wartime situation, the Pakistani Air Force was playing with fire.
But unlike the Chinese, the PAF’s abilities to challenge the skies over Kashmir and Ladakh were limited at best.
Khurana was merely tracking the F-16s because somebody had to. His real focus was on listening to the radio chatter coming in from the four Su-30s that had just tickled the Chinese S-300 defensive belt around the Aksai Chin with their Brahmos ALCMs. He knew the lethality of the S-300 from the IAF’s evaluation of the few systems in its service. But for all that fifty percent of the launched Brahmos missiles had made it to their targets and flattened two long-range radars. And despite the Chinese having covered up that hole with other redundant systems, he knew it must have hurt them. Radars like the ones they lost don’t exactly come cheap or quickly enough.
The next effort in operation Phoenix was not so much a tickle as it would be a punch.
Provided the situation remained the same.
Sure.
The likelihood of that happening was about as much as the Chinese packing up their S-300s and leaving the region.
And sure enough, his radio squawked again: “Eagle-Eye-One to all Claw elements, we have confirmed inbounds from the northeast. Thirty plus bandits and possibly twelve cruise-missiles at angels-thirty, two-hundred out. Eagle-Eye-One has the ball. Out.”
Khurana nodded in agreement. The interception commander on board the Phalcon was going to exercise control during this engagement. That being said, it did not take away any flexibility from the fighter-leaders such as Khurana. When the situation was ripe or if things went out of control, he was fre
e to take unilateral command of his Mig-29 pilots.
“Claw-One to all elements, realign bearing two-one-five. Look sharp! This is the real deal. Out,” Khurana said over his radio and looked to each side to see his pilots following him unhesitatingly.
If they were to engage the Chinese fighters head on, they could not afford to overfly the Chinese kill-zones over the Aksai Chin. So the idea was for them to fly south for thirty odd kilometers and then wait there until the last possible moment before heading on a reciprocal bearing towards the Chinese. This way they could lure the Chinese away from their ground based air-defense bubble and into Indian kill-zones instead.
Khurana’s flight of four Mig-29s was the western tip within the No. 28 Squadron group over Ladakh. They were realigning to face the Chinese. But in such congested skies, they were now presenting their open right flanks to the Pakistani F-16s. Khurana quietly looked to the right after having initiated his helmet mounted sights.
And sure enough, the off-bore-sight target-acquisition-system immediately reacquired the two F-16s on his four position. There was now no denying the fact that the skies were getting really crowded...
OVER LADAKH
DAY 1 + 1920 HRS
Now…now…now!
“This is Claw-One to all Claw elements: bring the birds about!”
Khurana and his flight pulled the control stick to the left and then backwards to conduct a loose formation turn. This brought them back out on a reciprocal bearing towards the Chinese Su-27s approaching the Aksai Chin.
On cue, dozens of green squares lit up on his HUD. He and the rest of No. 28 Squadron flicked the weapons option to long-range R-77s and the on-board radars went into acquisition mode.
Time ticked by as Khurana waited for the lead most Su-27s to enter the extreme engagement range of his missiles...
The audio tone changed just as lock-on was achieved and a green diamond box positioned itself inside the earlier green square to indicate the target lock on the leading Chinese Su-27. Khurana flipped open the launch button on the control stick as he waited for the squadron leader in Talon flight, the main No. 28 Squadron force alongside Claw flight, to give the go.
That command arrived a few seconds later:
“Talon-Leader to all Talon and Claw elements. Engage! Engage!”
Khurana pushed the launch button and felt the aircraft get lighter as the missile fell away. Then the motor ignited and lit up the underside of the aircraft before climbing away, its exhaust motor lit up like a flare inside the greenish view of Khurana’s helmet mounted night-vision goggles. He then released another R-77 and it fell from the opposite side of the aircraft. Then there were other such flares heading out from the loose formation of Mig-29s around him. Khurana was tracking the outbound missiles visually like a line of white dots receding away from him. His two missiles were tracking and heading towards their targets shown on his HUD by two small green rectangles…
The Chinese were just as quick to reciprocate. Thirty Chinese R-77 missiles headed towards the Indians and crossed paths with the twenty eight Indian R-77s.
The game of chicken begins...
The screeching audio warning tone lit up in the cockpits of the Indian Mig-29s as the inbound threats were detected. But no one broke formation. They couldn’t. Not if there was to be any hope of their missiles hitting a Su-27 at such long-range. This was a game of nerves.
With both sets of fighters now less than a hundred kilometers away and closing in on each other at a rate more than one-thousand kilometers per hour, the time to visual contact was less than three minutes. For the missiles streaking at high supersonic speeds, the much higher closure rate meant impact in seconds…
Come on, leader. Time for us to break loose over here!
Khurana’s hands sweated inside his gloves as the Chinese missiles closed in on Claw and Talon flights. Ever the alert warrior, the Squadron CO was on the radio in sync with Khurana’s own thoughts:
“Talon-Leader to Talon and Claw elements: Evasive maneuvers! Break! Break! Break!”
Khurana and his flight immediately dived for cover just as Chinese R-77 exhausts were spotted at the extreme visible range. The only safety lay within the mountains of Ladakh below. Khurana pushed the throttle all the way forward and clicked it into afterburner. This dumped a lot more fuel into the turbine exhausts of the engines and thrust the aircraft forward with a large jerk. Khurana checked his HUD fuel indicators and then put it out of his mind.
Fuel conservation be damned, the first priority is to live!
The snow clad mountains now occupied the entire front view through the HUD as his aircraft dived for the hills. It took but a second for the hills to appear big enough to prompt Khurana to pull back on the control stick and be crushed into his seat as the aircraft pulled level within the valleys below. That was good news for him, bad news for the Chinese missile, which could not follow him through solid rock.
Khurana was punching out loads of chaff as his aircraft streaked and weaved within the peaks below. The RWR audio warning was screeching continuously now as missiles were all over the sky. Unit coherence had been lost by both sides and now it was every pilot for himself until the missiles from both sides exhausted themselves or lost track of their targets.
In all the frantic seconds of flying he realized that he had lost track of the Chinese missiles behind him. There was no way to know amongst the chaos. He could see the odd Mig-29 dashing across the valleys just like him. There was no way to know even if his own missiles had claimed any Chinese Su-27s or not.
By now the threat level was reducing. Khurana suddenly remembered that he was still on afterburner.
Oh shit!
He pulled the throttle back and clicked it through the afterburner shutdown and felt the engine making lesser noise and becoming slower. Khurana also realized that he had been on afterburner for a long time now and the Mig-29 was not exactly a high endurance fighter. He checked the fuel indicator to show that he still had fuel left for re-entering combat. At least for a while.
It was time to do that now.
He pulled back on the control stick. The nose of the Mig-29 pitched up sharply and quickly brought him above the valleys and into the night sky above. He found himself south of the Karakoram peaks, still inside Indian Territory, but barely. He immediately checked the radar display to find the disposition of friendly and enemy fighters but there seemed to be a clutter all around.
He then heard a friendly tune in his ears:
“Claw-One, this is Eagle-Eye-One. Single bandit at bearing zero-three-zero. Relative. Range twenty clicks and closing. Out”
He was glad to see the Phalcon was still in control of the situational awareness. Something he had lost a few minutes ago. And it had given him his first new target: a Chinese Su-27 pilot like himself had also evaded missiles fired at him and had returned to the fight. More importantly, the Phalcon had warned Khurana about the Su-27. But the Su-27 pilot had no idea that Khurana was bearing down on him…
Khurana flipped his aircraft to the right and pulled back on the control stick to bring the rear of the Chinese Su-27 within the center of the HUD. The green square was immediately followed by a smaller diamond one and Khurana depressed the button that sent his third R-77 missile towards the enemy fighter. This time the initiative was with Khurana who detected no counter-attack by the Chinese pilot unaware of the threat behind him.
His R-77 slammed into the Su-27 from the rear and blotted the latter out of the sky in a ball of fire. He noticed that the small green square fluctuated for a few seconds before it disappeared from his view.
Score one!
It was at this time that Khurana’s eye caught hold of a massive flash of light directly above his cockpit. He jerked his head up and saw the flaming debris of a Mig-29 falling out of the sky. As he flipped his aircraft to the side and cleared away, he saw two other Mig-29s from his squadron busy in a within-visual-range dogfight with Su-27s a thousand feet above him.
It was
time to enter the fray and assist his outnumbered colleagues…
Khurana pulled back on the stick but this time carefully pulled the aircraft as he entered the raging air battle from below, hoping to catch a Chinese pilot by surprise. He switched now to the short-range R-60 missiles that were cued to his helmet optics. The nature of the audio tune changed as the R-60 seekers looked for a target.
Khurana finally found the large silhouette of Sukhoi against the green moonlit sky behind. He headed for this Su-27 from behind and below. It was a classic position for a shot. A few seconds later the missile left the pylons and headed quickly towards its target before hitting the port engine from below. The R-60 had a very small warhead that wasn’t well equipped for taking down heavy fighters. And sure enough, the Su-27’s port engine flamed out even as metallic debris fell out through the exhaust nozzle.
Khurana’s eyebrows went up in surprise to see the Su-27 still flying. But the latter was now crippled and attempting to exit the area on one engine. He switched his weapon system to “GUNS” and moved in for the kill. As his aircraft jittered with burst fire from the cannon, the sky in front of him lit up with tracers. These slammed into the underside of Su-27 with shuddering hits before the aircraft was enveloped in a small ball of fire and dived out of the sky...
Khurana had to pull his aircraft frantically to avoid flying though the flaming debris. He barely managed to skim though the smoke at the side of the fireball and streaked back into the night sky above...
Score two!
Khurana wasn’t the only pilot who had switched to guns. As aircraft after aircraft on both sides ran out of missile stores, they began switching to guns. The skies were now lined with tracers, white-hot flares dropping out of the skies and corkscrewed smoke trails from expended missiles. Then there were the small smoke columns of burning debris falling against the skies. More than two dozen remaining Indian and Chinese fighters neared exhaustion in numbers, fuel and weapons...
