SOURCE: AFI
Chinese social media platforms are ablaze with frustration following reports that India recovered multiple PL-15E air-to-air missiles, some nearly intact, after recent aerial engagements during Operation Sindoor on May 7, 2025. The recovery of these advanced Chinese-made missiles, used by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), has triggered a heated online debate, with Chinese netizens shifting from initial praise of their weapon systems to deflecting blame onto Pakistan’s operational tactics.
In the early stages of the conflict, Chinese social media users lauded the PL-15E, a beyond-visual-range (BVR) missile with a claimed range of 200-300 kilometers, as a game-changer for the PAF. Posts celebrated its advanced active radar homing and dual-pulse motor, positioning it as superior to Western counterparts like the AIM-120 AMRAAM. However, as reports surfaced that Indian forces retrieved several PL-15E missiles—some barely damaged—from crash sites in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Indian territory, the narrative shifted. Chinese netizens began downplaying the recoveries, accusing the PAF of misusing the missile’s capabilities.
Indian netizens, meanwhile, mocked the recovered missiles as “Chinese duds,” pointing to their failure to hit Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft, including Rafale and Su-30 MKI jets, during the skirmishes. Indian defense sources claimed that the IAF’s electronic countermeasures (ECM) and evasive maneuvers neutralized the PL-15E’s effectiveness, with some missiles failing to detonate or lock onto targets. The recovery of near-intact missiles has raised concerns about India potentially reverse-engineering the technology, further fueling Chinese outrage.
Chinese netizens have countered these claims, arguing that the PL-15E did detonate in some cases but failed to down IAF aircraft due to poor tactics by PAF pilots. Many pointed to the PAF’s alleged practice of firing the missiles at their maximum range (D-MAX), which reduces accuracy and allows targets to evade. “The missile is world-class, but PAF pilots lack the skill to use it properly,” one user commented on Weibo. Others criticized Pakistan’s lack of integrated air combat strategies, noting that the PL-15E’s effectiveness depends on real-time data from AWACS and ground radars, which may have been disrupted by Indian electronic warfare.
The controversy has spotlighted the PL-15E’s performance in real-world combat, with implications for China’s defense export market. The missile, developed by the 607th Institute and marketed as a cornerstone of China’s air superiority arsenal, is also used by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). Its apparent underperformance in Pakistani hands has led to embarrassment among Chinese netizens, with some calling for stricter oversight of how exported weapons are deployed.
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