YANGON (AFP) - A Myanmar pilot died on Tuesday (April 3) after a "technical failure" caused his military jet fighter to plummet into a paddy field in the centre of the country, the army said.

A live video on Facebook showed flames billowing up from the crash site near Kyunkone village about an hour away from the capital Naypyidaw.

Local people found the unconscious body of the pilot attached to his parachute nearby and tried to drag him away from the scattered debris for medical help.

The army chief's office later confirmed on its Facebook page that the crash was due to a "technical failure" and that the pilot died of his injuries on the way to a military hospital in nearby Taungoo town.

"An investigation is ongoing," the post added.

Police told AFP that the single-seater F-7 jet fighter went down around 10am on Tuesday morning while a military source said the pilot, Major Arkar Win, was in his mid-30s.

The F-7 is a Cold War era fighter jet - a Chinese made variant of the Soviet Union's MiG-21.

Myanmar has seen a spate of aviation accidents in recent years, including a devastating military plane crash in June last year in which 122 people were killed.

Bad weather caused the Chinese-built Shaanxi Y8, which was carrying dozens of soldiers and more than 70 relatives of servicemen, including 15 children, to plummet into the Andaman Sea.

It took days for rescue workers to pull bodies and parts of the aircraft, including the black box, from the sea. </s> A F-7 fighter jet on a training flight crashed on Tuesday in Central Myanmar due to “a sudden engine shutdown,’’ killing the only pilot onboard, according to the Deputy Director General of the Department of Civil Aviation, Ye Htet Aung.

The Chinese-made F-7 crashed near Taungoo Air Base in Myanmar’s Bago Region at 10:36 a.m., the official said.

Pilot Arkar Win died in the crash, he added.

In June 2017, a military Y-8 transporter crashed into the Andaman Sea off the coast of southern Myanmar, killing all 122 people on board. </s> Two Myanmar fighter pilots were killed in separate crashes due to heavy fog Tuesday, officials said, with the debris from one of the planes killing a young girl in her home.

Poor visibility caused one F-7 jet to fly into a telecommunications tower near Magway air force base more than 500 kilometres northwest of Yangon, an air force official told AFP.

"He had no time to eject," said the official, who did not want to be named.

A 10-year-old girl, who was studying at home, was hit by a piece of the plane after it struck the tower, lawmaker Kyaw Swan Yee from nearby Min Buu town said.

"She died after arriving at hospital," he said.

In the other incident -- which ocurred just 10 miles (16 kilometres) away -- the pilot managed to eject from his plane but was killed when he hit the ground according to the official.

The pilots were named as Captain Hein Thu Aung and Captain Phyo Maung Maung, both in their thirties.

Magway's chief minister and a delegation of lawmakers paid their respects to the girl's family, Kyaw Swan Yee said.

The crashes are the latest aviation catastrophes to blight the country's air force.

In April an F-7 pilot died after his jet crashed due to a technical failure.

In June last year a Chinese-built Shaanxi Y8 carrying military personnel and their families plunged into the Andaman sea after taking off, killing 122 people, 15 of whom were children.

The F-7 is a Cold War-era fighter jet -- a Chinese made variant of the Soviet Union's MiG-21. </s> A military fighter jet crashed on Tuesday morning near Kyun Kone village in Taungoo Township, Bago Region, killing the pilot, who was the downed aircraft’s sole occupant.

Speaking to DVB, Second Lieutenant Toe Wai Kyaw of the Kyun Chaung police station, a jurisdiction that covers Kyun Kone village, said the Chinese-manufactured F-7 aircraft crashed around 11 a.m., adding that the military is expected to release a full statement about the accident.

“I don’t know any more information about that. The aircraft was just a training jet. The pilot ejected from the aircraft,” he said. “Now, officials from the military are starting an investigation into why the aircraft crashed.”

The Office of the Commander-in-Chief released a brief statement at 2 p.m. saying the downed jet’s pilot, Major Arkar Win, had ejected and deployed his emergency parachute, but succumbed to injuries sustained during the crash shortly after being transported to a military hospital in Taungoo.

“[We are] still investigating the details of the air crash,” said the statement.

In September 2017, a G-4 fighter jet crashed during a training exercise spanning Irrawaddy Region and Rakhine State, with the pilot and co-pilot both killed. Earlier that same year, a military transport plane plunged into the Andaman Sea off Burma’s southeast coast, killing all 122 passengers, which included soldiers and their family members.

A Beechcraft 1900 turboprop with five men on board went down in the capital Naypyidaw in February 2016, shortly after taking off. There were likewise no survivors.

Early this year, Burma’s armed forces inked a deal with Russia to buy six Su-30 fighter jets at a total cost of about $200 million in an ongoing push to upgrade the country’s military hardware. </s> BANGKOK — Two Chinese-made fighter jets flown by Myanmar’s air force crashed on Tuesday morning, killing both pilots and a young bystander and drawing attention to the accident-plagued record of one of Asia’s largest armed forces.

Officials said the planes, both single-seat F-7 fighters, apparently struck a broadcast tower. One plummeted into a rice paddy, while the other nose-dived near a famous Buddhist pagoda in the Magway region of central Myanmar. Both jets broke into pieces upon hitting the ground at around 7:30 a.m., said U Aung Moe Nyo, the chief minister of Magway.

An 11-year-old girl, Thwal Zin Nyein, was killed when debris from one of the jets struck her as she was studying outside at a private school. The chunk of the aircraft, which had instructions for the installation of a bomb affixed to it, scattered notebooks, rulers and pencil cases decorated with cartoons.

“The doctor said she passed away but I still can’t believe my daughter died like this,” said U Khin Maung Phyu, her father. “She will always be alive in my heart.” </s> Yangon: At least three people, including two pilots, were killed in two military fighter jets crash in Minbu township of Myanmar’s Magway region on Tuesday. A female student on the ground died after she was hit by pieces of the jets’ wreckage in the incident, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Services attributed the incident to bad weather, saying that two out of four jet fighters crashed while returning to Magway Airbase after flight training in the morning. Despite successful landing of the first two fighters amid bad weather condition, the two others failed with one crashing near Sapwet creek bridge, south of Minbu, while the other near a field, 1 km west of Tanatpinsu village.

The pieces of the wreckage of the fighter jet that crashed near Sapwet creek bridge, hit the female high school student who died in a hospital due to injuries. According to an initial report of the Air Force, one fighter jet hit a tower pole and its wing clapped with that of another aircraft, thus crashing together. The local police were investigating the incident. </s> Baku. 14 January. REPORT.AZ/ JAS 39 GRIPEN fighter jet crashed on a runway during an airshow for Children’s Day in Hat Yai, Songkhla province, Saturday morning, forcing a temporary closure of the airport.

Report informs citing the TASS, according to local media reports, the pilot identified as Sqn Ldr Dilokrit Pattavee was killed during the 9.27am incident.

A Thai military air show for children was marred by tragedy Saturday when a fighter jet plunged from the sky and burst into flames, killing the pilot. The audience evacuated. A committee to investigate the incident was created.

Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha expressed condolences to the family of the deceased pilot. </s> A Thai air force pilot died when his fighter jet crashed at an air show Saturday during the country’s Children’s Day.

Amateur video footage shows the JAS 39 Gripen jet maneuvering over the Hat Yai air base in southern Thailand when it suddenly lost altitude and crashed in a ball of fire away from spectators.

The Ministry of Defense was investigating the cause of the crash.

Deputy government spokesman Werachon Sukondhapatipakerachon said Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha expressed condolences to the pilot’s family.

Children’s Day is usually observed with public outings at military bases. </s> A video screen grab shows a plume of smoke and fire rises from the site where a fighter jet crashed during and airshow, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2017, in Hat Yai, southern Thailand. A Thai air force pilot died when the JAS Gripen fighter jet crashed during an air show celebrating the country's Children's Day.

BANGKOK — A Thai air force pilot has died when his fighter jet crashed at an air show during the country's Children's Day.

Amateur video footage shows the JAS 39 Gripen jet maneuvering over the Hat Yai air base in southern Thailand when it suddenly lost altitude and crashed in a ball of fire away from spectators.

The Ministry of Defense is investigating the cause of the crash on Saturday.

Deputy government spokesman Werachon Sukondhapatipakerachon says Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha expressed condolences to the pilot's family.

Children's Day is usually observed with public outings at military bases.
A military pilot is killed when his F-7 fighter jet crashes into a paddy field in Kyunkone, central Myanmar.