Rattled by Balakot air strike, Pakistan tried to retaliate but failed: Report

The Pakistani Air Force (PAF) tried to carry out a Balakot-like attack against Indian military targets a day after the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out aerial strikes on a Jaish e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorist camp in Balakot. However, the PAF was unsuccessful in its attempt. "On February 27, the Pakistani Air Force with its package of more than 20 planes led by the American F-16s along with the French Mirage-IIIs and Chinese JF-17, fired 11 H-4 1,000 kg bombs from ranges of around 50 km inside their territory at military targets at three locations but failed to hit any of them," government sources revealed to ANI. 

The H-4 bombs fired by the PAF’s Mirage-IIIs are classified as stand-off weapons which can be launched from a distance to aid in quicker evasive manoeuvres of jets that fire them, similar to the Spice-2000 bombs used by the Indian Air Force in the Balakot strikes. H-4 bombs are made by Pakistan with the assistance of South Africa. 

"The H-4s are not very accurate and missed their targets. In one of the attacks on an army camp in Jammu and Kashmir, the building was protected by a tall and thick tree which suffered extensive damage but deflected the Pakistani bomb," the sources added.