Tejas | Pakistan

India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd said on Monday the crash of a Tejas fighter jet in Dubai last week was an “isolated occurrence” caused by “exceptional circumstances”, without providing further details. On Friday, India’s Tejas fighter jet crashed in a ball of fire in front of horrified spectators during an aerial display at the Dubai Airshow. The Indian Air Force has said it is setting up a court of inquiry to investigate the cause. State-owned Hindustan Aeronautics manufactures the aircraft, which is powered by General Electric engines. Both companies have said they will support the investigation. Tejas, which means brilliance in Sanskrit, is seen as crucial for India’s efforts to modernise its air force fleet of mainly Russian and ex-Soviet fighters. The crash, which killed the pilot, dampens New Delhi’s hopes of exporting the home-built jet and leaves it reliant on Indian military orders to sustain its role as a showcase of domestic defence technology. Such a public loss could overshadow India’s efforts ...

The crash of India’s Tejas fighter in front of global arms buyers at the Dubai Airshow is the latest blow to a key national trophy, leaving the jet reliant on Indian military orders to sustain its role as a showcase of home-built defence technology. The cause of Friday’s crash was not immediately known but it capped a week of jockeying for influence at the event, attended by India’s arch-rival Pakistan six months after the neighbouring foes faced off in the world’s largest air battle in decades. Such a public loss will inevitably overshadow India’s efforts to establish the jet abroad after a painstaking development over four decades, experts said, as India paid tribute to Wing Commander Namansh Syal who died in the crash. Crash at showcase event in Dubai “The imagery is brutal,” said Douglas A. Birkey, executive director of the US-based Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, referring to the history of crashes at air shows where nations and industries seek to tout major national achievements. “A crash send...

An Indian fighter aircraft, the indigenously developed Tejas, crashed during a demonstration flight at the Dubai Air Show on Friday, a witness and officials told AFP. The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited-built Tejas jet crashed at about 2:10pm local time. View this post on Instagram Videos circulating on social media showed the aircraft failing to recover from an aerial maneuver and bursting into a ball of flames after impacting the ground as onlookers watched in shock. A plume of smoke billowed from the crash site as emergency vehicles sped towards it. The incident happened on the last day of the Middle East’s biggest airshow, which features a flying display each afternoon. Hundreds of people were watching from a grandstand, while the apron was packed with planes, helicopters and other hardware on static display. In September, India signed a $7 billion order for 97 upgraded Tejas Mk1A fighter jets to replace its Russian MiG-21 fleet after decades of use. In a post on X, the Indian Air Force (IAF) confirmed the ...

ISLAMABAD - The crash of India’s indigenous fighter aircraft Tejas at the Dubai Air Show has exposed corruption, failures and incompetence in India’s defence equipment manufacturing sector.