The Indian Tejas fighter jet crashed during a flying display at the Dubai Airshow on Friday, killing the pilot, and people on the Internet were quick to point out the reason, although no official clarification has yet been provided.
Talks of technical problems with the Indian fighter jet had been circulating for days after a video allegedly showed an “oil leak”.
However, Indian officials denied reports of an oil leak, saying that “the fluid observed was part of a routine drainage process, not a technical malfunction.”
In a post on
The PIB called the video a “false narrative”, being pressured to “undermine the proven technical reliability of the fighter.”
However, netizens were quick to highlight the video after the deadly crash, pointing out that the Indian Air Force flew the fighter jet despite the technical problems.
Meanwhile, defense expert Air Marshal (retd) Asim Saleem said such accidents were not unusual during “risky aerobatics”.
“Since you are flying freely with the plane and you are extremely close to the ground, the margin of error is zero,” he said while talking to Geographic news.
According to Air Marshal Saleem, these accidents are usually the result of pilot error or technical problems with the aircraft.
However, he highlighted the video of the oil leak and said that “in this case there is more chance of a technical problem occurring.”
“Your air chief also made a statement that the products of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited are substandard and are not satisfactory as per Indian Air Force standards,” he said.
He also added that the pressure of participating in shows of this type, in which both the fighter plane and the pilot are the center of attention, increases the probability of making a mistake.
