The TEJAS fighter jet accident at the Dubai Air Show on November 21, 2025, poses a significant threat to India’s standing in the military industry and its aspirations to become a significant player in the global aerospace market. Nonetheless, India’s reaction to this event has the potential to turn a setback into a show of fortitude and respectable maturity in the defence industry.
Conducting open and interdisciplinary investigations, putting visible engineering and procedural fixes into place, establishing independent monitoring mechanisms, and controlling the narrative with disciplined, honest communication are all crucial.
Prior to the Dubai event, India’s TEJAS program had only had one hull-loss accident since its first flight in 2001, demonstrating a solid safety record across tens of thousands of fleet hours.
This contrasts well with international fighter jets such as the F-16, Gripen, Rafale, and Eurofighter Typhoon, all of which had numerous mishaps but recovered because to ongoing safety upgrades and technical advancements.
Maintaining credibility and trust in both local and international defence markets requires the transparent publishing of investigative findings, as is done internationally for similar mishaps.
India should launch prompt, reliable engineering investigations involving IAF pilots, HAL/ADA engineers, certification agencies, international OEMs, and UAE officials in order to preserve the “Made in India” defence label and increase export potential. Confidence will be strengthened by publishing comprehensive but censored causes and required measures.
Institutional supervision and safety governance will be strengthened by creating a Military Aviation Safety Board that is comparable to the US NTSB and is in line with international airworthiness standards (such as AS9100), digitised component traceability, and thorough human factors analysis.
For proactive and truthful communications, the Ministry of Defence, IAF, and HAL should collaborate to establish a coordinated crisis communication unit. In order to reassure customers and stakeholders, this should contextualise the TEJAS incident by referencing safety histories and recovery narratives of international fighter programs.
This incident can be strategically linked to India’s larger military accomplishments, such as Operation Sindoor, to highlight the country’s rise to prominence as a mature, technology-driven defence maker that can learn from mistakes.
India’s aspirations to export defence could be harmed in the long run by denial or nationalistic disobedience. Instead, India can be repositioned as a reliable and responsible aerospace company ready for long-term growth in international defence markets by implementing public investigations, obvious corrective actions, independent monitoring, and disciplined narrative control. The
