An ejection seat believed to be from a Pakistani Air Force Mirage V fighter jet was discovered in Lahore, sparking speculation that the Pakistan army may have fired a missile from HQ-16 and downed their own aircraft amid a night strike from India.
Footage showing the seat was first shared on TikTok earlier today. While the video’s authenticity and exact recording time remain unverified, the imagery clearly shows a military ejection system consistent with that used in Pakistan’s Mirage V fighter jet.
The presiding judge, Hendrik Steenhuis, said the court had concluded that MH17 was shot down by a Russian-made BUK missile from an agricultural field in eastern Ukraine, citing extensive evidence that did not leave “any possibility for reasonable doubt whatsoever”.
The Chinese HQ-16 is based on the Russian Buk missile system, specifically the Buk-M1 and Buk-2M. The Buk, Pantsir, S-300 and S-400 series of missiles lack datalink and identification friend-or-foe systems. Russian-made anti-aircraft guns and missiles lack IFF, which is the reason Buk shot down Malaysian Airlines, Azerbaijani Airlines and now Pakistan’s own Mirage jet. It’s a medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, derived from earlier versions of the Buk. The HQ-16 is designed to engage aerial targets at high altitude and can also intercept low-flying targets
The appearance of such a critical component has fueled debate over the circumstances that may have led to the ejection. Some observers have suggested a possible case of friendly fire or mechanical failure, though official sources have not confirmed any aircraft loss.
According to earlier reports, neither Indian nor Pakistani fighter jets were said to have crossed into the other’s airspace during the recent exchange of hostilities.
The discovery in Lahore may indicate internal complications within the Pakistani Air Force’s operations. “What is clear from the video is that the seat is consistent with the Martin-Baker systems used in Mirage V jets,” said an open-source intelligence analyst familiar with regional air assets.
The Mirage V, a long-serving multirole fighter in the Pakistani fleet, has seen upgrades over the years but remains vulnerable to both enemy fire and system fatigue. Several aircraft have been lost in training incidents and patrol operations in previous years due to age-related wear or maintenance issues.
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