SOURCE: AFI
On the night of May 4-5, 2025, Commodore Ahmed Hussain SI(M), Director General Public Relations (Navy) and spokesperson for the Pakistan Navy, announced on the official @PakistanNavy
X account that an Indian Navy P-8I aircraft was under the “vigilant watch” of Pakistan’s naval forces. The statement, intended to showcase the Pakistan Navy’s surveillance capabilities, quickly backfired, drawing widespread ridicule from Indian commentators and netizens.
The Indian Navy’s P-8I, a maritime patrol aircraft derived from the Boeing 737, is equipped with advanced sensors for reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare. However, it is not a stealth aircraft, and its presence is easily detectable, especially when operating in international airspace. On this occasion, the aircraft was openly broadcasting its location on FlightRadar24, a public flight-tracking platform, making its movements visible to anyone with internet access.
Indian observers were quick to point out the irony of Pakistan Navy’s boast. The P-8I’s flight path over international waters along the Pakistani coastline was deliberately made public, a calculated move to signal India’s monitoring capabilities while ensuring adversaries felt its presence. Far from being a clandestine operation, the aircraft’s visibility was so pronounced that it could reportedly be spotted with the naked eye.
Social media platforms, particularly X, buzzed with reactions mocking the Pakistan Navy’s claim. Critics highlighted that detecting an aircraft openly advertising its position on a civilian tracking service was hardly a noteworthy achievement. “Boasting about ‘tracking’ a P-8I that’s literally on FlightRadar24 for the world to see is peak comedy,” one user quipped. Others emphasized the aircraft’s non-stealth design, noting that the modified Boeing 737 is built for surveillance, not covert operations.
The episode underscores the growing role of open-source intelligence and public platforms like FlightRadar24 in modern naval operations, where transparency can be as strategic as secrecy. For now, the Pakistan Navy’s attempt to project vigilance has instead fueled an amusing narrative of miscalculation, with India’s P-8I flight serving as both a operational success and a public relations coup.
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