Explained: Negative G Manoeuvre That Tejas Pilot Performed Before Crash

An LCA Tejas fighter jet that crashed during an air show in Dubai was executing a negative G turn before it slammed the ground, aviation experts who saw visuals of the manoeuvre have said based on their initial assessment.

The pilot died in the crash, the Indian Air Force (IAF) said in a statement on X.

While only a thorough investigation can find out what went wrong, the videos from the airshow indicated the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas suddenly lost altitude while trying to regain level flight after completing a loop manoeuvre.

Negative G in aviation refers to forces acting on an aircraft and its contents in the opposite direction of normal gravity. These forces are typically experienced during aerobatic manoeuvres, sudden descent, or severe turbulence.

If not properly managed, negative G can lead to disorientation or loss of consciousness due to blood pooling in the head. Pilots undergo specific training to manage and mitigate the effects of negative G forces during flight operations.

The LCA Tejas that crashed was from a squadron in Tamil Nadu's Sulur, and it was in service since 2016.

After the vintage Russian-origin MiG-21 was decommissioned recently, the LCA Tejas was billed as the next workhorse of the IAF. This small fighter jet has the best safety record in the IAF - the Dubai air show crash is the second crash in 24 years.

The first crash happened in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer in March 2024 - that was 23 years after the aircraft's first test flight in 2001.

The LCA Tejas is designed in such a way that it is inherently unstable so that it can be very agile. However, this means the LCA Tejas needs a very capable fly-by-wire system (flight computer) to keep the aircraft stable.

The American F-16 is also intentionally unstable to make it more manoeuvrable.