Tragic Tejas Fighter Jet Crash at Dubai Air Show Witnessed by Spectators: Complete Incident Details

Tejas jet crash was caught on camera

Dubai:

A spectator who witnessed the Indian Air Force's Tejas fighter jet crash during an aerial display at the Dubai Air Show expressed disbelief at the tragic incident.

Abu Bakr, a real estate advisor who recorded video of the indigenous aircraft before it crashed, killing Wing Commander Namansh Syal on Friday, described how the tragedy unfolded before his eyes.

"Initially, the pilot was performing standard maneuvers like other aircraft. Suddenly, we noticed the jet descending lower and lower. We expected him to pull up, but unfortunately, he couldn't recover, and the aircraft crashed immediately," he told NDTV on Saturday.

"Everyone was in shock because such incidents are unprecedented in this country. This was the first time anyone had witnessed something like this," he added.

He described the experience of watching such a tragedy unfold in real time as "unbelievable."

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Bakr was among hundreds of attendees at the final day of the Middle East's premier aviation event, which began on Monday.

"We had checked the schedule to see which aircraft would be performing. When we saw the Tejas was included, we were excited to record it since we're Indian. We never imagined it would end in such tragedy," he explained.

He noted that initially, people thought the pilot had ejected. "However, after carefully reviewing my video footage, we couldn't see any evidence of the pilot escaping from the aircraft."

The single-seat Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) had been flying for approximately eight minutes and completed multiple passes before entering a nose-dive around 2:15 pm local time. Reports suggest the pilot failed to recover from a negative-G maneuver attempted at low altitude.

The aircraft, developed by state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), belonged to a squadron based in Sulur, Tamil Nadu, and had been in active service since 2016.

"A court of inquiry is being constituted to ascertain the cause of the accident," the Indian Air Force announced in an official statement.

This incident marks the second crash involving a Tejas aircraft in under two years. In March 2024, another Tejas fighter jet crashed in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, which was the first accident in the aircraft's 23-year operational history since its inaugural test flight in 2001. In that previous incident, the pilot successfully ejected and survived.