New Delhi: The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday confirmed that Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman shot down a Pakistan F-16 jet with his MiG-21 Bison during a fierce dogfight on February 27.

Top IAF sources confirmed that Varthaman had fired an R-73 missile to take out the F-16 aircraft, however, his jet was also hit by an AMRAAM missile.

The statement by the IAF confirms that Pakistan did use F-16 — a fact that Pakistan has been constantly denying.

Sources told India Today that in his last radio transmission, Varthaman said that he had locked on to a Pakistani aircraft.

After Varthaman’s aircraft crashed on the enemy territory, he was captured by Pakistan Army. He destroyed all the documents on him, ate some and drowned others in a pond, and raised patriotic slogans before he was captured by the local youth. The description comes from Pakistan’s own Dawn newspaper.

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However, he was released after three days. 

The F-16 encroached into the Indian air space after the IAF carried out an air strike on Jaish-e-Mohammed terror camps in Balakot. 

Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility for the attack on the CRPF convoy in Pulwwama, which claimed at least 40 jawans’ lives