Wing Commander Namansh Syal, an Indian Air Force pilot, tragically lost his life when the Tejas fighter jet he was flying crashed during a demonstration at the Dubai Airshow on November 21, 2025. In a rare gesture of empathy, Salman Akram, brother of late Pakistani F-16 pilot Wing Commander Nauman Akram who died in a similar accident in March 2020, publicly expressed condolences to Syal’s family, urging dignity and restraint in the face of tragedy. Akram criticized the vitriolic reactions from some sections of Pakistani media, emphasizing that mocking a professional soldier’s death in an accident is contrary to both military ethos and religious morality. The incident has prompted a court of inquiry by the IAF and drawn attention to the shared risks faced by pilots across borders, even as geopolitical rivalries persist.