A system for pump down operations in a wellbore includes a tool string disposed in a wellbore, the tool string including a cable head having an upper end coupled to an electric wireline cable, a downhole tool coupled to the cable head, the downhole tool selected from the group consisting of perforating tools and downhole logging tools. In this embodiment, the system further includes a downhole tension sensor located proximal to the upper end of the cable head, the sensor adapted to obtain downhole wireline tension data and transmit the downhole wireline tension data via the electric wireline cable, a fluid pump with a fluid output operatively connected to the wellbore above the tool string, and a controller adapted to selectively adjust a pump fluid output rate of the fluid pump during pump down operations based on the downhole wireline tension data received from the downhole tension sensor.