An IAF Tejas crashed on Friday afternoon during the Dubai Air Show 2025, claiming the life of the pilot. Not long after the crash, the Indian Air Force (IAF) in an official statement confirmed that the crashed aircraft belonged to them.
VIDEO | Dubai: A Tejas fighter jet taking part in the Dubai Air Show nosedived during an aerial display and crashed this afternoon. The HAL-manufactured aircraft went down around pm local time while performing manoeuvres in front of a large audience. An official statement from… pic.twitter.com/qirtaKLivu
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 21, 2025
"An IAF Tejas aircraft met with an accident during an aerial display at Dubai Air Show, today. The pilot sustained fatal injuries in the accident. IAF deeply regrets the loss of life and stands firmly with the bereaved family in this time of grief. A court of inquiry is being constituted, to ascertain the cause of the accident," the Indian Air Force said on X in a detailed statement that followed.
The incident comes not long after India's multi-role fighter aircraft Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas was allegedly found with an "oil leak" while on display. Personnel placed several bags beneath the aircraft to catch the leaking fluid, leading to widespread discussion online, viral videos had claimed. READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Here is what we know so far:
An IAF Tejas aircraft met with an accident during an aerial display at Dubai Air Show, today. The pilot sustained fatal injuries in the accident.
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) November 21, 2025
IAF deeply regrets the loss of life and stands firmly with the bereaved family in this time of grief.
A court of inquiry is being…
- The crash was reported at 2:10 pm local time.
- The jet involved was performing an aerobatic stunt sortie to engage the spectators when it crashed.
- The pilot was not able to eject safely and died, the IAF confirmed at 4:35 IST.
- The accident occurred moments after the aircraft completed its first round of manoeuvres.
- As scheduled, the aircraft performed two aileron rolls. During the attempt at a third roll, it veered off its flight path and hurtled towards the ground at high speed.
- Some media reports claimed that the pilot failed to recover from a negative G-force turn, leading to the crash. Negative G-force is the force experienced in a direction opposite to that of gravity.
- The air crash was caught on camera by spectators at the pavilion.
- Tejas fighters are equipped with Martin-Baker zero-zero ejection seats, which allow pilots to eject safely even at zero altitude and zero speed, NDTV said in a report.
(With inputs from Mintu P. Jacob)
