Shocking decision to continue: US pilot quits Dubai air show after Tejas crash

United States Air Force (USAF) pilot Major Taylor 'Fema' Hiester on Saturday expressed shock over the Dubai Air Show 2025 organisers' decision to continue with the event even after the tragic Tejas aircraft crash which killed an Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot last week.

In an emotional Instagram post, F-16 Viper Demonstration Team Commander Hiester announced that his team has decided to cancel their final performance, along with a few others, "out of respect to the IAF pilot, his colleagues and family".

He described his reaction after being informed that the flying displays would carry on despite the crash. "I walked through the show site maybe an hour or two later expecting it to be empty, down, or off. It wasn't," he wrote.

The comments came after Wing Commander Namansh Syal tragically died on Friday when his Tejas fighter jet, a multi-role Light Combat Aircraft built indigenously by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), crashed during a manoeuvre at Al Makhtoum Airport.

Horrifying visuals showed the aircraft plummeting onto the ground and bursting into flames. Syal was unable to eject safely.

"Yesterday, on the final day of the Dubai Airshow, Indian Air Force Wing Commander Namansh Syal was killed performing a fighter jet acrobatic demo in the Tejas. Our team was preparing our own airplane to fly our own display. Though the show made the shocking decision to continue with the flying schedule, our team along with a few others made the decision to cancel our final performance out of respect to the pilot, his colleagues and family," Hiester, who goes by @femahiester on Instagram, said in his post.

Furthermore, Hiester said the announcer remained enthusiastic despite the crash, the crowd continued watching subsequent routines with excitement, and the show ended with a congratulatory note to sponsors and performers.

"It was uncomfortable for me to imagine my team walking out of the show site without me to a rock and roll track as the next performer prepared. The show must go on, is what they always say. And they're right. But just remember someone will say that after you've gone too," he wrote.

On Sunday, Syal's mortal remains were brought to Sulur Air Force Base in Tamil Nadu and received with full military honours. Later, they were flown to Himachal Pradesh and taken to his native Patiyalkar village in a flower-decked Army truck, accompanied by a convoy of armed forces and civilian vehicles.

At the cremation in Kangra district, his wife, Wing Commander Afshan, sobbing inconsolably and holding their six-year-old daughter, managed a final farewell salute. Fighter pilot Syal was cremated with full military honours and a gun salute, while his cousin Nishant performed the last rites.

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