Operation Sindoor | India's S-400 air defence missile system played key role in targeting Pakistan: How precise and lethal are S-400s?

India activated the S-400 air defence missile system after the Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor which carried out a series of precision strikes targeting nine terror targets, including terror camps and launchpads, in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). As per reports, it played a crucial role in India's mission.

The S-400 missile system, a powerful weapon in the Indian Air Force fleet, is capable of thwarting any possible air attack in India.

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The range of the S-400 missile system is between 40 to 400 km. An agreement for this S-400 missile technology was signed between India and Russia during Russian President Putin's visit to India in October 2018. At present, this missile technology is considered to be the most powerful defence system in the world.

The Ministry of Defence confirmed the strikes early Wednesday, calling them a “focused, measured and non-escalatory” response to the recent attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, where terrorists brutally killed 26 civilians after identifying and segregating them.

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What are S-400?

S-400 missile system has multi-target capability and can simultaneously track and engage up to 80 targets. It can handles multiple types of aerial threats: aircraft, drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles. It has a long range. It uses multiple missile types:

• 40N6: up to 380 km (for large, distant targets).
• 48N6: up to 250 km.
• 9M96 series: up to 120 km and 40 km (for smaller, faster targets).

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The effective altitude engagement is from 5 meters up to 30 km+. It has advanced radar system as it is quipped with phased-array radars that can detect stealth aircraft and low-flying targets. Its detection range is up to 600 km for large aerial objects. It is fully mobile and can be deployed in 5–10 minutes. All components (launchers, radars, command vehicles) are mounted on trucks for rapid movement. It can be integerated into broader air defense networks (like India's IACCS).

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Operation Sindoor

The Indian Armed Forces launchedOperation Sindooron May 7 at 1.05am to 1.30 am. Briefing the country on Operation Sindoor, women officers Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, Wing Commander Vyomika Singh and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri informed that India exercised its right to respond and hit nine terror targets, including terror camps and launchpads, in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). They said that India's actions were measured and non-escalatory, proportionate and responsible. India remains committed to non-escalation but won't shy away from providing a suitable response to Pakistan, said the Indian Defence Ministry in a press release shared by the nation's nodal press information agency, PIB on Thursday. As per the press release, on the night of 07-08 May 2025, "Pakistan attempted to engage a number of military targets in northern and western India."

Using drones and missiles, Pakistani forces targeted several civilian areas in the region, including the cities of Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Adampur, Bhatinda, Chandigarh, Nal, Phalodi, Uttarlai, and Bhuj. Read More | Operation Sindoor: Pakistan targeted Indian cities like Chandigarh, Amritsar and others, attempted to escalate

Pahalgam terror attack

A terror attack on April 22 in Baisaran Valley of Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam district killed 26 tourists.An offshoot of the banned Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) - The Resistance Front (TRF) - claimed responsibility for the attack. After the attack, India launched a series of actions against Pakistan. The Indian government put into abeyance the Indus Waters Treaty, expelled its diplomats, called back Indian officials from Islamabad, and closed the Attari border, its airspace for Pakistani flights and ships, parcels and imports from Pakistan. New Delhi has also blocked the Instagram accounts of several Pakistani cricketers and celebrities.