Around the time IAF pilot Wing Commander Namansh Syal was killed after his Tejas fighter jet crashed during the Dubai Air Show on Friday afternoon, Taylor “FEMA” Hiester, a US F-16 demo pilot, was waiting for his team’s turn to perform at the event. As they watched the tragedy unfold, the team, along with a few others, took a decision to cancel its performance out of respect to the deceased pilot, his colleagues and family even as the organisers of the event decided to continue the show.

A day later, taking to social media, Hiester called the decision to not cancel the show as “shocking” and the experience of seeing the crowd continue watching the aerial performances as “uncomfortable”.

Sharing an emotional account of the incident on Saturday, Hiester said the accident took place whe

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