In the aftermath of the Galwan Clashes in 2020, in an attempt to counter India’s military prowess, China had deployed five times more J-20 stealth fighters to tackle India’s one Rafale Jet that was deployed at the India-China border following conflict at the Line of Actual Control. During an interview, the former Indian Air Force (IAF) chief, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria, recounted that after the deployment of the Rafale fighter jets, the “strongest weapon” in India’s arsenal, China was prompted to four J-20 fighters in response.
Additionally, as the number of Rafale Jets increased to four, China ramped up its deployment to twenty J-20s, resulting in a ratio of five J-20s deployed by Beijing to counter each Rafale. Thus, for China, stationing J.-20 jets, Beijing’s most advanced fighter aircraft, was a direct countermeasure to the Rafale’s capabilities. “The Chinese knew what we could do,” Bhadauria remarked.
Though Bhadauria did not specify the exact locations and times of these deployments, reports suggest that China positioned J-20s near the Indian border at the Hotan Airbase in Xinjiang province. The move came after the then-newly inducted Rafale jets had begun conducting night flying exercises in the mountainous terrain of Himachal Pradesh. The Chinese media, which made attempts to downplay the deployment by India, had justified Beijing’s J-20 deployment as routine training exercises to enhance operational readiness.
Since then, China has intensified its military presence at the Hotan Air Base, stationing a diverse pack of fighter jets and drones to bolster its defensive capabilities and counter India’s military prowess.
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