Another IAF Pilot Lost – When Will This Stop?

On the night of April 2, 2025, India lost one of her most promising air warriors. Flight Lieutenant Siddharth Yadav, a brave young pilot from Rewari, Haryana, lost his life when a Jaguar fighter aircraft crashed during a routine training sortie near Jamnagar, Gujarat. While one pilot managed to eject safely, Siddharth couldn’t. He was engaged to be married, full of life, and dedicated to the service of the nation. Now, he is gone.

And we’re left asking the same painful question again — When will this stop?

The Enemy Within: Outdated War Machines

Flight Lieutenant Yadav didn't die in battle. He didn’t die fighting enemy jets or terrorists. He died flying an aircraft older than him. The Jaguar fighter jet, inducted into the Indian Air Force in the late 1970s, is a Cold War relic. These jets have served the country with distinction, no doubt. But they were never built to outlive generations of pilots. Today, in 2025, we are still risking the lives of our finest officers by making them fly machines that should have long been decommissioned.

No nation aspiring to become a global power should allow its armed forces to operate under such conditions.

Despite upgrades and patchwork modernization efforts, the hard truth remains: these jets are past their prime. Mechanical failures, aging components, and diminishing reliability have led to repeated tragedies. India has lost too many aircraft, and worse, too many young pilots, in crashes that could have been prevented — if only the system had moved faster.

The Real Cost of Delay

Every time a crash like this occurs, the usual phrases follow: "Court of inquiry ordered", "Technical malfunction suspected", "Heroic pilot lost in the line of duty". We mourn. We pay tribute. And then we move on.

But the families don’t.

Parents lose sons. Fiancées lose futures. And the Air Force loses talent, morale, and momentum.

Flight Lieutenant Siddharth Yadav’s death is not an isolated incident — it is part of a shameful pattern. According to reports over the past two decades, India has lost hundreds of aircraft and dozens of pilots to preventable crashes. Most of these involve aging jets like the MiG-21 (dubbed the “flying coffin”) and Jaguars.

Is this the price we are willing to keep paying for bureaucratic red tape, budget delays, and indecisiveness?

Time for Accountability and Urgent Action

We need to stop romanticizing sacrifice and start demanding responsibility.

Why are aircraft that are over 40 years old still flying? Why are indigenous fighter programs like Tejas facing delays in scaling up production? Why aren’t procurement plans executed with the urgency they deserve? Our pilots train to fight enemies across the border — not to dodge system failures and pray their ejection seats work.

Yes, defence procurements are complex. Yes, geopolitical challenges are real. But a life lost to administrative apathy is a life wasted.

India has the money, the talent, and the global clout to ensure that its armed forces are equipped with state-of-the-art machinery. What it lacks is the political will and administrative urgency.

Flight Lieutenant Yadav Deserved Better

Let us be clear — Flight Lieutenant Siddharth Yadav died not because of war, but because of our failure to retire old machines. His death is a national shame cloaked in the garb of duty.

He, like so many others, deserved better.

Let this not be another statistic. Let this not be another file marked “under inquiry” collecting dust. Let it be a wake-up call. For every Indian. For every policymaker. For everyone who claims to value national security.

Because until we stop sending our pilots into the sky with outdated wings, we will keep writing eulogies when we should be celebrating careers.

The nation salutes Flight Lieutenant Yadav. But now, the nation must also act.