Tejas pilot ejects safely before IAF aircraft crashed in Rajasthan. Video

In it, the pilot can be seen drifting down with a parachute seconds before the aircraft smashed into the ground. (Image credit: @Fortkotra/X)

A Tejas light combat aircraft crashed near Jaisalmer in Rajasthan on March 12. The pilot managed to eject before the crash. A video of the incident is now viral.

In it, the pilot can be seen drifting down with a parachute seconds before the aircraft smashed into the ground. This is the first time that the India-made fighter jet has suffered a crash.

JUST IN : Visual of IAF Tejas Crash just after take off. Pilot ejected safely as we can see in video.

Story continues below Advertisement

Remove Ad

Looks like Engine got in Trouble shortly after Take off from Airbase...

A Solid Safety record of 23 Yr broken with such Engine failure..

pic.twitter.com/ZMIXcGhxL2

Related stories

• 
  Udaipur wedding: When Raveena Tandon arrived in the Queen of Mewar’s 100-year-old doli on her wedd...
• 
  Indian techie in Japan earns Rs 1.35 lakh a month, takes home Rs 98,000. Video triggers debate
• 
  Indian 'jugaad' to beat workplace surveillance tool goes viral, sparks online debate

— Vivek Singh (@VivekSi85847001) March 12, 2024

Jaisalmer Additional Superintendent of Police Mahendra Singh said there was no loss of property or human life in the incident. Thick black smoke was seen billowing out from a single-storey brick structure where the aircraft crashed.

The crash took place around 100 km from the Pokhran desert where a mega war game 'Bharat Shakti' witnessed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and top military brass was underway. Military sources indicated that the Tejas jet was to be part of the exercise, reported news agency PTI.

#WATCH | Rajasthan | A Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas of the Indian Air Force crashed near Jaisalmer today during an operational training sortie. The pilot ejected safely. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident. pic.twitter.com/3JZf15Q8eZ

— ANI (@ANI) March 12, 2024

An operational training sortie involving an Indian Air Force Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas near Jaisalmer resulted in the crash. A Court of Inquiry has been initiated to determine the cause of the accident, the Indian Air Force said. "A Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas of the Indian Air Force crashed near Jaisalmer today during an operational training sortie. The pilot ejected safely. A court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident," the IAF said in a statement.

The fighter jet, whose name means flame or brilliance in Sanskrit, was inducted into the force in 2016 after a long wait in India's efforts to modernise its largely Soviet-era fleet.

Tuesday's crash breaks the jet's safety record since its first test flight more than two decades ago, an Air Force officer told news agency Reuters.

(With inputs from agencies)

Read more: PM Modi's Tejas Sortie boosts indigenous confidence