HAL Claims Tejas Crash Was Minor Technical Incident, Promises Critical Checks On The Fleet
HAL dismissed reports of a Tejas crash as a minor technical incident on ground, even as questions continue over fleet safety checks and the ongoing Tejas Mk1A induction process. Image courtesy: Wikimedia commons.
India’s state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Monday (February 23, 2026) denied that a Tejas combat aircraft operated by the Indian Air Force (IAF) had crashed at a frontline air base earlier this month, dismissing it as a “minor technical incident on the ground.”
The denial came a day after media reports had suggested that the Tejas had crashed during a final landing approach, possibly due to a brake failure, resulting in injuries to an experience pilot in the rank of a Group Captain.
The report also claimed that the aircraft was damaged badly, resulting in possibly a write off of the aircraft, as it was beyond repair now. The IAF had reportedly ordered extensive checks on the aircraft fleet before it goes airborne again.
The HAL denial did not address the key issues of the aircraft being damaged beyond recovery or regarding the injury to the pilot in the accident, or even the thorough inspections on the aircraft ordered by the IAF.
The HAL posted on its X handle that it “acknowledges the recent media reports on the LCA Tejas incident and wishes to provide factual clarification. There has been no reported crash of the LCA Tejas. The event in question was a minor technical incident on ground.”
The state-run listed company added that the LCA Tejas “maintains one of the world’s best safety records among contemporary fighter aircraft” and that, as part of standard operating procedure, the issue is being analysed in depth in coordination with the IAF for a speedy resolution.
The report of the Tejas crash has come at an inopportune time for HAL, as the IAF has been insisting on a thorough review of the Tejas Mk1A project before it agrees to acceptance trials of the five ready aircraft for induction into the combat squadrons.
The latest incident is the third Tejas aircraft loss for the IAF since its induction into the combat squadrons in 2016. The first crash took place in March 2024 when the aircraft was returning to base after participating in a fire power demonstration in the Pokhran ranges in Rajasthan, when the aircraft was lost but the pilot ejected to safety.
The second, more deadlier accident took place at the Dubai Air Show in November 2025 when an experienced pilot flying the Tejas in a flying display could not get the aircraft to recover from a difficult manoeuvre, resulting in the jet crashing, killing the pilot on the spot.
