J10-Rafale dogfight keenly watched in West

A top Chinese-made Pakistani fighter plane shot down at least two Indian military aircraft on Wednesday, two US officials told Reuters, marking a major milestone for Beijing's advanced fighter jet.

An Indian Air Force spokesperson said he had no comment when asked about the Reuters report. The performance of a leading Chinese fighter jet against a Western rival is being closely watched in Washington for insights into how Beijing might fare in any showdown over Taiwan or the wider Indo-Pacific.

World powers from the US to Russia and China have called for calm in one of the world's most dangerous, and most populated, nuclear flashpoint regions.

In France, Rafale manufacturer Dassault Aviation and the MBDA consortium, which makes the Meteor air-to-air missile, could not immediately be reached for comment on a public holiday.

While Reuters reported on Wednesday that three Indian planes went down, citing local government officials in India, this marks the first Western confirmation that Pakistan's Chinese-made jets were used in the shootdowns.

Defense minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif told Reuters on Thursday that the J-10 was used to shoot down three French-made Rafale planes, which were newly acquired by India. Altogether, Pakistan says it downed five Indian planes in air-to-air combat.

Closely eying

The Rafale and the model of the J-10 used by Pakistan are both considered generation 4.5 fighter jets, placing them at the leading edge of combat aircraft. Western analysts and defense industry sources said the live use of some of the advanced weapons that could be deployed in future major power conflicts would be scrutinized in minute detail, but emphasised it was too early to draw firm conclusions.

"Air warfare communities in China, the US and a number of European countries will be extremely interested to try and get as much ground truth as they can on tactics, techniques, procedures, what kit was used, what worked and what didn't," said Douglas Barrie, senior fellow for military aerospace at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.