'Tedha hai par mera hai': Viral post on F-16 vs Tejas crashes ignites heated debate over HAL

A viral social media post has ignited a sharp debate in India after two recent crashes involving American-made fighter jets drew little public outrage abroad, while similar incidents involving India’s indigenous Tejas aircraft triggered calls at home to scrap the programme. The contrast, highlighted in a widely shared tweet, has reopened questions about how people in India judge domestic defence projects versus global ones.

'Tedha hai par mera hai': What triggered the online debate

The tweet, posted by defence observer @hukum2082, struck a chord online with a simple line: "Tedha hai par mera hai." "In the last 24 hours, two American-made F-16 fighter jets crashed, one in Turkey that killed the pilot and another in South Korea where the pilot ejected safely. The incidents passed without large public campaigns demanding accountability from the manufacturer or calls to scrap the aircraft’s programme," the post read.

The reaction stood in contrast to how sections of Indians responded to two recent accidents involving the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, a crash near Jaisalmer in March 2024 where the pilot escaped safely, and a fatal incident at the Dubai Airshow in November 2025.

Numbers behind the narrative

The debate quickly moved beyond emotion to numbers.

The F-16 is a decades-old aircraft with more than 5,000 units built and over 20 million flying hours globally. Across its long service life, it has seen roughly 600 incidents, averaging about one mishap every 33,000 flying hours.

Tejas, by comparison, is still in its early years. Around 55 aircraft have logged roughly 10,000 flying hours so far. Its three recorded incidents, including a runway overshoot, translate to roughly one incident every 3,000-odd hours.

Some users described the comparison as “apples and oranges”, noting that new aircraft programmes typically face early-stage challenges before maturing into reliable platforms.

The bigger question: Support or scrap

The viral tweet has pushed a wider question into the spotlight, how should a country treat its own defence projects in their early years?

Many users argued that mature aviation powers typically respond to such setbacks by increasing investment, improving design and strengthening programme leadership rather than abandoning the project.

Several comments also called for structural reforms at Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), including more flexibility in hiring top engineering talent and linking leadership accountability to programme milestones.

Why Tejas matters for India

India’s indigenous fighter programme is not just about building a jet. It ties into larger goals of defence self-reliance, employment generation, and reducing dependence on foreign suppliers.

Supporters of the programme argue that every major fighter aircraft in history , including the F-16, faced teething issues in its early years before becoming a mainstay for air forces across the world.

They say abandoning such programmes early would keep India dependent on imports for decades.