An Indian Air Force pilot was killed on Friday after the Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA Mk-1) he was flying crashed at the Dubai airshow on Friday, the IAF said.
“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 IAF said in a statement.
Visuals circulating on social media showed the indigenous fighter jet hitting the ground and erupting into a fireball.
The incident comes at a time when the IAF is preparing to induct an advanced variant of the aircraft, the LCA Mk-1A.
This is only the second LCA crash ever recorded.
Earlier, a single-engine Tejas fighter jet crashed near Jaisalmer in Rajasthan on March 12, 2024, minutes after participating in a tri-services exercise showcasing India’s progress toward self-reliance in the defence manufacturing sector. The pilot ejected safely in that incident.
The LCA Mk-1 had taken part in the Bharat Shakti tri-services exercise at the Pokhran firing range near Jaisalmer along with another Tejas aircraft before it went down.
The IAF inducted its first Tejas aircraft in July 2016 and currently operates two Mk-1 squadrons (each comprising 16 to 18 aircraft). Both aircraft involved in the crashes belonged to the Mk-1 fleet inducted under the initial operational clearance (IOC) and the more advanced final operational clearance (FOC) configurations — the first variants of the LCA.
A biennial Dubai Air Show is currently underway, taking place in the 40th anniversary year of host carrier Emirates.
The show became a stage for the arms industry and aerospace companies, and major aircraft orders by both the long-haul carrier Emirates and its lower-cost sister airline FlyDubai, were seen.
Industry professionals from 150 countries had arrived in Dubai for the grand air show, and leading aerospace firms like ombardier, Dassault Aviation, Embraer, Thales, Airbus, Lockheed Martin, and Calidus took part.
The Dubai Air Show began on November 17 and was scheduled to conclude on Friday, November 21, the day the Tejas jet crashed.
