Indian Air Force vs Pakistan Air Force, Full Comparison

Globally known The Global Air Powers Ranking 2022 of WDMMA has placed the Indian Air Force (IAF) above the People's Liberation Army Air Force, also known as the Chinese Air Force and also above Pak.

Table of Contents

Indian Air Force vs Pakistan Air Force

Globally known The Global Air Powers Ranking 2022 of WDMMA has placed the Indian Air Force (IAF) above the People’s Liberation Army Air Force, also known as the Chinese Air Force and also above Pakistan’s Airforce. IAF has been ranked sixth, above the Pakistan Air Force which has been placed at 18th spot.

If we measure quantitatively in terms of personnel, then certainly India has an upper edge over Pakistan as the Indian Air Force (IAF) is the fourth-largest air force globally after the US, China, and Russia. India has currently around 1,70,000 personnel and 1,645 aircraft. India’s Air Force is quite more powerful but India lacks in the number of pilots as the IAF currently has a ratio of 1.5 pilots per aircraft in comparison to 2.5 pilots per aircraft for the PAF.

Officially, the Indian Air Force is considered to be a more progressive and developed force than the Pakistan force which has over 65 thousand personnel and it has almost half the number of fighter aircraft that India possesses.

Indian Air Force vs Pakistan Air Force: Military Aircrafts

Considering the number of combat aircraft, India stands at number four among other countries with 5 per cent of the total number of Aircraft globally. On the other hand, Pakistan stands at number eight worldwide.

Fighters of Two Air Forces

Fighters of the Indian Air Force (667 units)

Fighters of Pakistan Air Force (453 units)

Su-30MKI (Multirole)-242

MiG-21bis (Interceptor)-132

Jaguar M/S (Attack)-130

MiG-29UPG (Multirole)-66

M2000H/I (Multirole)-45

Tejas Mk.1 (Multirole)-16

Rafale (Multirole)-36

F-7 (Fighter)-135

JF-17 (Multirole)-109

Mirage 5EF/F/PA (Strike)-90

Mirage IIIEP/PF/RP (Interceptor)-69

F-16A/C (Multirole)-44 J-10C (Multirole)-6

Helicopters of Two Air Forces

Helicopters of IAF (438 units)

Helicopters of PAF (35 units)

Mi-17/171 (Medium-Lift)-223

HAL Dhruv (Multirole)-91

SA 316/SA319 (Utility)-77

SA 315 (Light Utility)-17

Mi-25/25/35 (Gunship/Transport)-15

AH-64E (Attack)-8

CH-47F (Medium Lift)-6

Mi-26 (Heavy Lift)-1

AW139 (Utility)-12 SE 160

(Light Utility)-10 Mi-171

(Transport/Gunship)-6

Bell 205 (Medium Utility)-5

Bell 412 (Medium Utility)-1

SA330 (Transport)-1

Transport Aircraft

Transports of IAF (250 units)

Transports of PAF (28 units)

An-32 (Tactical)-104

HS 748 (Utility)-57

Dornier 228 (Utility)-50

IL-76MD/MKI (Strategic)-17

C-17 (Strategic/Tactical)-11

C-130J (Tactical)-11

C-130B/E/L (Tactical)-16

Saab 2000 (Utility)-6

CN-235 (Tactical)-3

Y-12(Utility)-3

Trainers

Trainers of IAF (304 units)

Trainers of PAF (285 units)

Hawk 132 (Advanced Jet Trainer)-104

HJT-16 (Light Jet Trainer)-79

PC-7 Mk II (Basic Trainer)-75

Jaguar T (Strike Trainer)-30

M 2000TH/TO (Fighter Trainer)-16

MFI-395 (Flight Trainer)-120

K-8 (Advanced Jet Trainer)-38

F-16B/D (Fighter Trainer)-31

T-37 (Jet Trainer)-28

JF-17B (Fighter Trainer)-25

Mirage IIIBE/D/DP (Interceptor Trainer)-18

FT-6 (J-6) (Fighter Trainer)-9

SA316 (Helicopter Trainer)- 8

FT-7 (Fighter Trainer)-6

Mirage 5DPA2 (Strike Trainer)-2

Aerial Tankers/Refuelers

Aerial Tankers/Refuelers of IAF (7 units)	Aerial Tankers/Refuelers of PAF (4 units)
Ilyushin Il-78 (Aerial Refueling)-7	IL-78 (Strategic)-4

Aircraft for Special Missions

Indian Air Force Special-Mission (14 units)

Pakistan Air Force Special-Mission (13 units)

Gulfstream III (Electronic Warfare)-3

A-50E (Airborne Early Warning)-3

Gulfstream G100 (Reconnaissance)-2

Global 5000-2 Boeing 737 (Reconnaissance)-2

Embraer ERJ (Airborne Early Warning)-1

Boeing 737 (Reconnaissance)-1

Saab 2000 (Airborne Early Warning)-5

Y-8 (Airborne Early Warning)-4

Falcon 20 (Electronic Warfare)-2

Super King Air (Reconnaissance)-2

FAQs related to Indian Air Force vs Pakistan Air Force

Q1. Which country has the fourth-largest air force globally?
Ans. Indian Air Force (IAF) is the fourth-largest air force globally after the US, China, and Russia.

Q2. Name some of the Transports Aircrafts of IAF.
Ans. Boeing C-17 Globemaster, Ilyushin Il-76 and C-130J Super Hercules.

Q3. How many air crafts are there in Indian Air Force?
Ans. Indian Airforce has currently 1,645 total units in its active aircraft

FAQs