IAF pilot's father was looking for air show videos when he learnt of Tejas plane crash: 'Moments later, officers arrived ...'

Wing Commander Namansh Syal was the pilot of the ill-fated Tejas that crashed during the Dubai Air Show on Friday. (Image: X)

Wing Commander Namansh Syal, who died in the Tejas fighter jet crash at Dubai Air Show Friday, had asked his father to watch his performance online. Around 4pm, Jagan Nath Syal began searching for the air show videos on YouTube to watch his son in action but instead stumbled upn the news of the deadly crash.

Jagan Nath, who last spoke to his son on Thursday, immediately dialled his daughter-in-law to check what happened.

"I last spoke to my son yesterday. He told me to see his performance during the air show on TV channels or YouTube. Around 4 pm today, I was searching videos of the ongoing air show in Dubai on YouTube when I saw reports about the plane crash. Immediately, I called my daughter-in-law, who is also a Wing Commander, to check what happened," he told Indian Express.

Soon after, the doorbell rang, confirming his worst fear. "Moments later, at least six Air Force officers arrived at our house and I realised something bad happened to my son," he said.

Jagan Nath and his wife Veena Syal, who hail from Kangra in Himachal Pradesh, are currently at Namansh's house in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore. The couple reportedly went to Coimbatore two weeks ago to look after their seven-year-old granddaughter Aarya Syal. Their daughter-in-law is undergoing training in Kolkata.

Namansh completed his schooling from Sainik School, Sujanpur Tira, in Hamirpur district of Himachal. He had joined the defence forces after clearing the NDA exam in 2009. "He was excellent in studies and dreamt big about his life. This incident left us completely shattered," said the grieving father.

He was trained in MiG-21, which was recently retired from the Indian Air Force's services. Namansh also had experience of flying Sukhoi Su-30 MKIs. Lately, he was flying Tejas of the third Squadron.

Jagan Nath said his wife Veena was not in a state to talk after learning of their son's demise. "I asked officers who came to inform me about … when his body will be brought back. They didn't give a definite time, but hinted that the process is likely to take at least two days," he said.

The indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), crashed around 2.10 pm local time (3:40 pm IST) during an eight-minute aerial display at Al Maktoum International Airport.

A plume of black smoke rose above Al Maktoum International Airport at Dubai World Central, drawing the attention of onlookers as sirens rang out in the aftermath of the crash. The IAF, in a statement, confirmed the death of pilot in the crash.