Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Tejas fighter plane crashed on Saturday while performing a manourvere during Dubai Air Show. Wing Commander Namansh Syal, who was flying the plane, died in the tragic incident. Now, hours after the crash, a fresh video has emerged showing the final moments of the Tejas plane when it was in the air and Wg Commander Syal was performing the stunt.
This is perhaps the cleared video of the accident, that shows the final 1 minute of the aircraft’s somersault, as the audience must have seen on the day of the tragedy.
Crashed Tejas’ last one minute
In the video, the plane is seen turning around and achieving some height after which the pilot turns it 90 degrees to his right, and it remains so for the next 10 seconds. Later, at half-minute, the aircraft turns further right in an upside down position.
As it further moves 360 degrees, it suddenly moves closer to the ground and crashes at 50th second. The video was shared by a user on Instagram, and gives a clear picture of how things unfolded in the Dubai skies on Friday.
A crystal clear capture of the final moments of Tejas before it crashed at Dubai Air Show. Amazing clarity.
— Man Aman Singh Chhina (@manaman_chhina) November 22, 2025
Video credit Instagram: @wltan1791a pic.twitter.com/paXhQNXvla
The jet abruptly dropped height after what looked like a low-altitude manoeuvre and then nosedived into the ground within seconds. A ball of fire was what everyone saw moments later.
The single-engine light weight aircraft crashed around 3.40 pm IST after Namansh had flown across the site during the demonstration flight. The aerial display of Tejas was scheduled to last eight minutes.
Grief engulfs pilot’s village
The IAF on Saturday expressed deep sorrow over the death of the pilot. Wing Commander Namansh Syal’s village in Himachal Pradesh has fallen silent with remorse and pain. Every house is mourning the loss of their son. For most of them, Namansh remains an outstanding athlete distinguished by his dedication to the country, “who even set an example in death by diverting the aircraft to save thousands present at the mega air show”.
The villagers are trying to console the wailing family. The mortal remains of the wing commander reached the Sulur Air Force station near Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu around 9 am on Saturday. It will be flown to the Gaggal airport in Kangra on Sunday.
Namansh’s uncle, Jogindernath came to know about the crash on Friday afternoon after Namansh’s father, who was not at home at the time, called him and asked if he had any information about the incident.
“My wife rushed to their tenant, who works in Qatar and had come to the village on a holiday. After scanning the latest news on the internet, he confirmed that it was Namansh who was flying the jet that crashed. I immediately contacted my brother to give him the tragic news. Initially, he did not believe what I said, and came to terms with reality only after I told him that it was confirmed information,” he told PTI.
Namansh has left behind his father, mother, wife, who is also serving in the Air Force, and their six-year-old daughter.
“As soon as I came to know about the crash, I contacted Namansh’s family members. Initially, we thought he was injured. Sadly, we were wrong… A promising career came to an abrupt end,” Nagrota Bagwan SDM Manish Kumar Sharma said.
