From HQ-9 air defence system to PL-15 missiles, the Chinese-made weapons Pakistan is using against India

It’s heating up between India and Pakistan. New Delhi’s precise and coordinated military strikes, codenamed Operation Sindoor, targeting 21 terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, prompted the nuclear-armed neighbouring nation to escalate matters with its own attack on the intervening nights of May 7 and May 8.

On the night of May 8, Islamabad launched a
swarm of drones and missiles at India’s civilian and military targets in Jammu, Punjab and Rajasthan, with India retaliating and intercepting all of them using its own advanced air-defence systems.

The attacks by Pakistan has shone a spotlight on Islamabad’s dependence on Chinese weaponry — the neighbouring country has used China-made missiles, China-made drones and Chinese-made air defence systems against New Delhi. Here’s a look.

HQ-9 air-defence system

In the hours following Operation Sindoor, Pakistan launched an attack on the intervening night of May 7-8, prompting New Delhi to counter. This counter-strike by New Delhi resulted in the destruction of Pakistan’s air defence unit guarding Lahore.

The HQ-9 is an air-defence system that China provides Pakistan. Modelled on the same lines of the Russian
S-300 platform, it is a long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system featuring advanced radar tracking and guidance systems. It is considered a flagship export of China’s defence industry and has been deployed by Pakistan in key strategic zones.

It has a range of 120 km in its base variant, extending up to 300 km in the HQ-9B, and can target objects at altitudes of up to 50 km.

As per a SIPRI arms transfers database, between 2013 and 2015, Pakistan acquired nine units of the variant, the HQ-16, from China in two separate orders, at a total cost of $599 million.

J-10C fighter jets

In the ongoing standoff, Pakistan has claimed it used Chinese-made J-10C fighter jets against India’s air force.

This single-engine, multirole combat aircraft was designed and made by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group. It entered service in the Chinese air force from 2003.

Notably, outside of China, the Pakistan air force is the only operator of the J-10 C fighter. A South China Morning Post report states that in 2020, Pakistan ordered 36 J-10CEs, the export version of the J-10C, together with 250 PL-15E missiles. The first batch of six planes was delivered in 2022, and to date, 20 J-10Cs are in service in the PAF.

Also known as the Vicious Dragon in China, the J-10C is more reminiscent of the French Mirage series of combat fighters. It is said that this fighter jet can carry up to six 500-kg laser-guided bombs, free-fall bombs, or pods with 90 mm unguided rockets. The aircraft also has a single-barrel 23 mm cannon.

PL-15 missiles

Reports also reveal that Pakistan has made use of China’s PL-15 missiles against India. These are long-range, beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile used by fighter planes. Their development by Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) began in 2011 and were tested the following year.

The PL-15 missile uses a dual-pulsed solid-propellant rocket and has an AESA (active electronically scanned array) radar. The AESA radar is combined with a two-way datalink, enabling precise targeting and mid-course corrections, making it a highly versatile weapon.

The operational range of the PL-15 missiles is 200-300 kilometres and it can travel at speeds of Mach 5. The PL-15 missiles are already integrated into China’s Chengdu J-20, J-10C, and Shenyang J-16.

Pakistan became the first customer of China’s PL-15 missiles.

SH-15 artillery guns

Following Operation Sindoor, Pakistani troops have been constantly firing across the LoC using Chinese-made SH-15 155mm Mounted Gun Systems (MGS). MGS are artillery guns mounted on a mobile truck-based platform, which increases the gun’s mobility, allowing the system to ‘shoot and scoot’.

Acquired by Pakistan in 2019, the SH-15 has a range of 20 kilometres using conventional shells and up to 53 km using rocket-assisted projectiles. It boasts of a fire rate of four-six rounds per minute. This howitzer is based on a new Shaanxi military truck with an armoured cabin. It accommodates a complete gun crew of six soldiers. The armour provides protection for the crew against small arms fire and artillery shell splinters.

It is reported that the SH-15 artillery guns have in-built GPS and inertial navigation systems enabling it to carry out accurate, rapid strikes even in challenging terrain. This makes the SH-15 ideal for Pakistan’s diverse operating environments — from mountain ranges in Kashmir to the deserts of Sindh and semi-urban zones in Punjab.

Chinese-made drones

While it is not clear which drones Pakistan is currently using to try to rain down hell on India, experts point that most of Islamabad’s drone arsenal comes from China in the form of Wing Loong II and CH-4 drones.

The Wing Loong II are next-generation medium-altitude long-endurance and strike-capable drones developed by China’s Aviation Industry Corporation of China. It has an overall length of 11 metres, a wingspan of 20.5 metres, and a height of 4.1 metres. The Wing Loong II is an upgraded variant of the Wing Loong UAV first introduced into service with the People’s Liberation Army Air Force in 2008.

Meanwhile the CH-4 drones,