A video (here and here) is being shared on social media claiming that it shows Air Chief Marshal AP Singh visiting the home of IAF pilot Shivangi Singh, the first Indian woman to fly the Rafale jet, and consoling her mother. It is also being claimed that Shivangi Singh went missing during Operation Sindoor. Let’s check the facts behind these claims.
Claim: Video of Air Chief Marshal AP Singh consoling the family of Rafale jet pilot Shivangi Singh, who went missing in Operation Sindoor.
Fact: The video actually shows Air Chief Marshal AP Singh visiting the family of late Sergeant Surendra Kumar in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan, who was killed during Operation Sindoor. There are no reports of Shivangi Singh going missing, and the IAF confirmed in May 2025 that all pilots returned safely from the operation. Hence the claim is FALSE.
To verify the claim, we conducted a reverse image search on Google, which led us to the same video uploaded by news channels on YouTube on 14 August 2025. The caption read, “Operation Sindoor | Air Force Chief Visits Family Of Sergeant Killed During Op Sindoor”. In the description, it was mentioned that Air Chief Marshal AP Singh visited the family of late Sergeant Surendra Kumar in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan, who was killed in the line of duty during Operation Sindoor. This confirms that the video is unrelated to Shivangi Singh and shows the Air Chief visiting Sergeant Surendra Kumar’s family.
We also found that the official Indian Air Force X handle shared visuals from the viral video. The post stated that Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, along with Mrs. Sarita Singh, visited the village Mehradasi in Jhunjhunu district, Rajasthan, the hometown of the late Sgt. Surendra Kumar, who laid down his life during Operation Sindoor. At his home, they met his mother, Mrs. Nanu Devi, his wife, Mrs. Seema, and his children, Vritika and Daksh. The post further highlighted Jhunjhunu’s proud legacy of service, with 21,700 ex-servicemen and 3,552 serving Air Warriors in the Indian Air Force. In addition, we reviewed news reports about the visit (here, here and here), which also clearly noted that the visit was to Sgt. Surendra Kumar’s home.
Additionally, there are no reports to suggest that IAF pilot Shivangi Singh went missing in Operation Sindoor. In fact, on 11 May 2025, Air Marshal AK Bharti confirmed during a press briefing that all pilots involved in the operation had returned home safely.
To sum up, a video of IAF Chief Marshal AP Singh visiting the family of late Sergeant Surendra Kumar in Rajasthan is being falsely shared as him visiting the home of IAF pilot Shivangi Singh.
