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The crash of the Indian fighter jet Tejas could be attributed to a stunt being performed“too low to the ground,” an aviation analyst said.

The jet crashed around 2.10pm on the last day of the Dubai Airshow while performing stunts, leading to the death of the pilot.

“It appears that the stunt being performed was simply too low to the ground and that there was not enough space between the pilot completing his loop and the ground beneath, resulting in the crash and fatality of the pilot,” said Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at London-based StrategicAero Research.

“This tragic crash is obviously in its early stages of investigation. The one saving grace is that the incident has been captured by many cameras,” he said in a statement to Khaleej Times.

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Tejas is India's indigenous, single-engine, multirole light combat aircraft, developed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). Designed with a delta-wing, tailless configuration, it is one of the smallest and lightest supersonic fighters in its class, which grants it high maneuverability and agility.

Its development began in the 1980s with the goal of replacing India's ageing MiG-21 fleet, and after two decades of work, the Tejas made its first flight in 2001.

The Indian Air Force participated in the Air Show with the Suryakiran Aerobatic Team and LCA Tejas. India has been regularly taking part in the airshow for many decades, showcasing its latest innovation and technologies.

There have been incidents of such serious incidents in other airshows around the world. But it is the first such serious incident in the history of the Dubai airshow, which began in 1986.

Saj Ahmad added that the very public nature of this crash“will almost certainly result in calls for less ostentatious and risky air show displays.”

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