A People’s Liberation Army pilot died when a fighter jet crashed during night training on Thursday evening in eastern Zhejiang.
No casualties were found on the ground, the Defence Ministry said yesterday, adding that aircraft was a Jian-8 fighter jet.
The accident happened at 7:11pm on Thursday night at Baofu town’s Tangkou village in Jian county. Local military departments and other organisations rushed to the scene to deal with the aftermath, it added.
The crash is the first air accident since Beijing announced a new air defence identification zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea last month.
Early mainland online reports said that the aircraft was a helicopter, and that the pilot was able to parachute out of the cockpit.
A picture published on the Zjol.com.cn showed the aircraft is a medium size plane, and woods around the crash site in flames.