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Fact Check
IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh meets and consoles the family of Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh, who has been missing since Operation Sindoor.
Video of Air Chief Marshal’s visit to martyr Sgt Surendra Kumar’s home in Rajasthan shared with false claims.
A video claiming to show Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, the Chief of the Air Staff, visiting the home of IAF pilot Shivangi Singh who allegedly went missing since Operation Sindoor, has gone viral on social media platforms.
Multiple pro-Pakistan handles, including verified accounts, have shared the 23-second-long-footage claiming to show the IAF Chief at the “home of missing pilot Shivangi Singh.”
Newschecker’s investigation, however, revealed that the claim is false.
Such posts can be seen here, here and here.
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A reverse image search on the keyframes of the viral clip led us to a report by NDTV, dated August 14, 2025. It featured the same footage to show Air Chief Marshal AP Singh visiting the family of late Sergeant Surendra Kumar in Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan. Sergeant Kumar was killed in the line of duty during Operation Sindoor.
Sharing images from the visit, the Indian Air Force said, “Air Chief Marshal AP Singh along with Mrs Sarita Singh paid a visit to village Mehradasi in Jhunjhunu district, Rajasthan, hometown of late Sgt Surendra Kumar, who laid down his life in the line of duty during Op Sindoor.” They met Sgt Kumar’s mother, wife and children at his home, the post added.
In one of the images, the Air Chief Marshal can be seen saluting a photograph of Surendra Kumar.
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PIB’s fact check unit also flagged the viral video as false, and corroborated that it actually shows the Air Chief Marshal meeting the family of late Sergeant Surendra Kumar. It further clarified, “Squadron Leader Shivangi is a serving member of the IAF and remains deployed operationally.”
Since the beginning of Operation Sindoor in May 2025, several pro-Pakistan social media handles have shared unrelated images and videos to falsely claim that IAF pilot Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh was captured by the Pakistani forces.
Newschecker has debunked multiple such fabricated claims on the Squadron Leader, which can be seen here and here.
Furthermore, in a press conference about Operation Sindoor, Air Marshal A K Bharti had confirmed that all Indian pilots were ”back home.” The PIB Fact Check too had earlier clarified that no Indian female pilot was captured by Pakistan.
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Hence, the viral posts, alleging to show Air Chief Marshal AP Singh consoling the family of “missing” IAF pilot Shivangi Singh, were found to be false.
Sources
Report By NDTV, Dated August 14, 2025
X Post By Indian Air Force, Dated August 13, 2025
X Post By PIB fact Check, Dated August 18, 2025
False
Vasudha Beri
December 3, 2025
Salman
December 3, 2025
Vasudha Beri
December 2, 2025
