{"id":29347,"date":"2019-02-28T13:42:24","date_gmt":"2019-02-28T08:12:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/?p=29347"},"modified":"2019-02-28T13:42:24","modified_gmt":"2019-02-28T08:12:24","slug":"no-these-are-not-pictures-of-pilots-who-carried-out-air-strikes-on-pakistan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/no-these-are-not-pictures-of-pilots-who-carried-out-air-strikes-on-pakistan\/","title":{"rendered":"No, these are not pictures of pilots who carried out air strikes on Pakistan"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>&#8220;\u092f\u0939\u0940 \u0935\u094b \u091a\u093e\u0930 \u0938\u093f\u092a\u093e\u0939\u0940 \u0939\u0948 \u091c\u093f\u0928\u094d\u0939\u094b\u0902 \u0928\u0947 \u0906\u091c \u0936\u094c\u0930\u094d\u092f \u0917\u093e\u0925\u093e \u0932\u093f\u0916\u0940 \u092d\u093e\u0930\u0924 \u092e\u093e\u0924\u093e \u0915\u0940 \u091c\u092f (These are the four soldiers who wrote the gallantry story today Bharat Mata Ki Jay -translated)&#8221;, <\/em>reads the caption attached to an image of four men in uniform shared by an individual user,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/photo.php?fbid=1042758449243836&amp;set=a.566821273504225&amp;type=3&amp;theater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jasmin Makwana<\/a>. In context of the air strike on February 26, the post suggests that these were the Indian pilots who conducted the strike in Balakot, Pakistan.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29352\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_909.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1182\" height=\"962\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_909.jpg 1182w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_909-300x244.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_909-768x625.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_909-1024x833.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_909-990x806.jpg 990w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1182px) 100vw, 1182px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The photograph has now gone viral on<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/search\/str\/%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%B9%E0%A5%80%20%E0%A4%B5%E0%A5%8B%20%E0%A4%9A%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%20%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%AA%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B9%E0%A5%80%20%E0%A4%B9%E0%A5%88\/stories-keyword\/stories-live?ref=top_filter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> Facebook<\/a> with similar captions.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Old, generic photos of Air Force personnel shared as pilots who carried out airstrike in Pakistan\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/320241442?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"520\" height=\"386\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>A set of pictures, where a group of air force pilots can be seen walking with their helmets on their side, is also being shared with a narrative that they had carried out the air strike in Pakistan. One Sunil Pandit posted two photographs on a Facebook group, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/423510124369933\/permalink\/2156038001117128\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>\u090f\u0915 \u0915\u0926\u092e \u0939\u093f\u0928\u094d\u0926\u0941 \u0930\u093e\u0937\u094d\u091f\u094d\u0930 \u0915\u0940 \u0913\u0930<\/em><\/a>, with the claim &#8211;<em>&#8220;\u092f\u0947 12 \u092d\u093e\u0930\u0924 \u0915\u0940 \u092e\u093e\u0902 \u0915\u0947 \u0928\u093e\u092f\u0915 \u0939\u0948\u0902 (These are the 12 heroes of our mother India -translated)&#8221;. <\/em><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29357\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_910.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1136\" height=\"1501\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_910.jpg 1136w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_910-227x300.jpg 227w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_910-768x1015.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_910-775x1024.jpg 775w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_910-990x1308.jpg 990w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1136px) 100vw, 1136px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Many other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/search\/str\/%E0%A4%AF%E0%A5%87+12+%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%A4+%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%80+%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%82+%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%87+%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%95+%E0%A4%B9%E0%A5%88%E0%A4%82\/keywords_search?epa=FILTERS&amp;filters=eyJycF9jcmVhdGlvbl90aW1lIjoie1wibmFtZVwiOlwiY3JlYXRpb25fdGltZVwiLFwiYXJnc1wiOlwie1xcXCJzdGFydF95ZWFyXFxcIjpcXFwiMjAxOVxcXCIsXFxcInN0YXJ0X21vbnRoXFxcIjpcXFwiMjAxOS0xXFxcIixcXFwiZW5kX3llYXJcXFwiOlxcXCIyMDE5XFxcIixcXFwiZW5kX21vbnRoXFxcIjpcXFwiMjAxOS0xMlxcXCIsXFxcInN0YXJ0X2RheVxcXCI6XFxcIjIwMTktMS0xXFxcIixcXFwiZW5kX2RheVxcXCI6XFxcIjIwMTktMTItMzFcXFwifVwifSJ9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Facebook<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/search?f=tweets&amp;vertical=default&amp;q=%E0%A4%AF%E0%A5%87%2012%20%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%A4%20%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%80%20%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%82%20%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%87%20%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%95%20%E0%A4%B9%E0%A5%88%E0%A4%82&amp;src=typd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a> users have shared the picture with an identical narrative.<\/p>\n<h2><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29358\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_911.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1146\" height=\"1357\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_911.jpg 1146w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_911-253x300.jpg 253w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_911-768x909.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_911-865x1024.jpg 865w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_911-990x1172.jpg 990w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1146px) 100vw, 1146px\" \/><\/h2>\n<h2>Fact-check<\/h2>\n<h2>Image 1<\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29359\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52964818_1042758455910502_1422868819159810048_o.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1102\" height=\"540\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52964818_1042758455910502_1422868819159810048_o.jpg 1102w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52964818_1042758455910502_1422868819159810048_o-300x147.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52964818_1042758455910502_1422868819159810048_o-768x376.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52964818_1042758455910502_1422868819159810048_o-1024x502.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52964818_1042758455910502_1422868819159810048_o-990x485.jpg 990w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1102px) 100vw, 1102px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Upon reverse searching the above image on Google, the photograph appears to be a generic picture which has used by several websites in their articles and blogs. This image is found in a 2011 <a href=\"https:\/\/higherstudy.blogspot.com\/2011\/04\/pilot-license-course-indira-gandhi.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">blog<\/a> titled, <em>&#8220;Pilot License Course Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi&#8221;. <\/em>This was one of the earliest instances when the image appeared on the internet that we were able to trace.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29361\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1773\" height=\"1217\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912.jpg 1773w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912-300x206.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912-768x527.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912-1024x703.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912-990x680.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912-1320x906.jpg 1320w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_912-379x259.jpg 379w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1773px) 100vw, 1773px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Image 2<\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29362\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52730262_616719072109577_9191115651345809408_n.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52730262_616719072109577_9191115651345809408_n.jpg 720w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52730262_616719072109577_9191115651345809408_n-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52730262_616719072109577_9191115651345809408_n-414x276.jpg 414w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52730262_616719072109577_9191115651345809408_n-470x313.jpg 470w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52730262_616719072109577_9191115651345809408_n-130x86.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52730262_616719072109577_9191115651345809408_n-187x124.jpg 187w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The image posted above was found in a <a href=\"http:\/\/lurch2.blogspot.com\/2015\/08\/photos-indias-su-30mki-flankers-sparred.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">blog<\/a> dated August 7, 2015. <em>&#8220;India&#8217;s Su-30MKI Flankers Sparred With Royal Air Force Typhoons&#8221;<\/em>, reads the title of the blog. Suffice to say, the image is at least three years old and had existed on the internet before the air strike in Balakot, Pakistan.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29363\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_913.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1443\" height=\"697\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_913.jpg 1443w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_913-300x145.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_913-768x371.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_913-1024x495.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_913-990x478.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_913-1320x638.jpg 1320w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1443px) 100vw, 1443px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Image 3<\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29364\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52898546_616719138776237_7822097484330565632_n.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"474\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52898546_616719138776237_7822097484330565632_n.jpg 720w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52898546_616719138776237_7822097484330565632_n-300x198.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52898546_616719138776237_7822097484330565632_n-130x86.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/52898546_616719138776237_7822097484330565632_n-187x124.jpg 187w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>A third photograph circulating on social media was found in an October, 2015 blog post. Image 2, earlier debunked in this article, was also included in this <a href=\"http:\/\/abingdonboy.tumblr.com\/post\/130284063766\/joint-exercise-between-the-indian-air-force-and\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">post\u00a0<\/a>titled, &#8220;<em>Joint exercise between the Indian Air Force and Royal Air Force \u201cExercise Indradhanush\u201d 2015&#8243;.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-29365\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2038\" height=\"1400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914.jpg 2038w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914-300x206.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914-768x528.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914-1024x703.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914-990x680.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914-1320x907.jpg 1320w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Selection_914-379x259.jpg 379w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2038px) 100vw, 2038px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>According to a report published in August 2015, Indian Air Force personnel on July 31 had conducted Indradhanush-IV, an Indo-UK bilateral air exercise in United Kingdom. However, we couldn&#8217;t conclusively establish that the images are related to the same exercise. Moreover, in a statement given to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boomlive.in\/no-this-is-not-the-pilot-who-carried-out-the-iaf-air-strike\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Boom<\/em><\/a>, the Indian Air Force had categorically denied of having made public the details about the personnel involved in the mission.<\/p>\n<p>In conclusion, old images of Indian Air Force personnel were shared as of the pilots who carried the air strike in Pakistan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;\u092f\u0939\u0940 \u0935\u094b \u091a\u093e\u0930 \u0938\u093f\u092a\u093e\u0939\u0940 \u0939\u0948 \u091c\u093f\u0928\u094d\u0939\u094b\u0902 \u0928\u0947 \u0906\u091c \u0936\u094c\u0930\u094d\u092f \u0917\u093e\u0925\u093e \u0932\u093f\u0916\u0940 \u092d\u093e\u0930\u0924 \u092e\u093e\u0924\u093e \u0915\u0940 \u091c\u092f (These are the four soldiers who wrote the gallantry story today Bharat Mata Ki Jay -translated)&#8221;, reads the caption attached to an image of four men in uniform shared by an individual user,\u00a0Jasmin Makwana. In context of the air strike [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":29368,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"an_content_type":[739],"coauthors":[152],"class_list":["post-29347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","fact_checks_claim_type-viral-photos","an_content_type-fact-check"],"blocksy_meta":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/02\/Army.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29347","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29347"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29347\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29402,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29347\/revisions\/29402"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29347"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29347"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29347"},{"taxonomy":"an_content_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/an_content_type?post=29347"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=29347"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}