Explained: Negative G Manoeuvre That Tejas Pilot Performed Before Crash

A Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas that crashed during the Dubai Air Show was performing a negative G turn just before it hit the ground, according to aviation experts analyzing the incident.

The pilot tragically died, the Indian Air Force (IAF) confirmed. A Court of Inquiry has been launched to investigate the accident.

What Happened

Videos from the airshow show that the Tejas suddenly lost altitude while attempting to regain level flight after completing a loop manoeuvre. Experts say the jet was experiencing negative G forces, which occur when forces act opposite to normal gravity?common in aerobatics, sudden dives, or turbulence.

If negative G is not managed correctly, it can cause disorientation or loss of consciousness, as blood rushes to the head. Pilots undergo specialized training to handle such forces during flight.

About the Aircraft

The crashed Tejas belonged to a squadron based in Sulur, Tamil Nadu, and had been in service since 2016. After the decommissioning of the MiG-21, the Tejas became the IAF?s new workhorse. It has a strong safety record, and this Dubai crash marks only the second incident in 24 years. The first occurred in March 2024 in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, 23 years after the Tejas? first test flight in 2001.

The LCA Tejas is intentionally designed to be inherently unstable for extreme agility. This requires a highly capable fly-by-wire system (flight computer) to maintain stability?similar to the design philosophy of the American F-16, which is also intentionally unstable to improve manoeuvrability.