Indian Navy was ready for missile strike on Pakistan, but no order came

During Operation Sindoor, the Indian Navy was placed on high alert and prepared to launch missile strikes on key targets inside Pakistan, but the final order to launch the missiles was never issued.

Naval assets had received specific target assignments, which included Pakistan Navy ships and submarines stationed in Karachi harbour, as well as land-based strategic sites. The planned strikes were to be carried out using BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles and submarine-launched land-attack cruise missiles, likely of the Russian-origin Klub series, integrated into India’s Kilo-class submarines.

“Both warships and submarines were in position to launch anti-ship and land-attack missiles,” a source told NDTV. Had the order been given, many of Pakistan’s frontline naval assets — including frigates and corvettes that remained docked during the conflict — could have been destroyed while still in harbour. This would have marked a major escalation in hostilities during Operation Sindoor.

Although the Indian Navy did not ultimately launch these strikes, some land-based naval weapon systems were used to target terrorist camps and infrastructure within Pakistan. The exact nature of these weapon systems has not been disclosed.

A key element of India’s maritime dominance during the standoff was the INS Vikrant carrier battle group, which enabled control over the airspace along Pakistan’s southern coastline. The MiG-29K fighter jets onboard the Vikrant ensured that Pakistani air activity over the sea was nearly non-existent.

Shortly after the hostilities ended, a lone Pakistan Navy RAS-72 Sea Eagle maritime patrol aircraft ventured out to sea. It was quickly detected by the INS Vikrant’s group and intercepted by a MiG-29K fighter, which approached within a few hundred metres, compelling the Pakistani aircraft to turn back to the coast.

Operation Sindoor was launched by the Indian Armed Forces on May 6–7, 2025, in retaliation for the deadly April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, where 26 civilians were killed. The Indian strikes targeted at least nine terrorist infrastructure sites in Pakistan.