Air Force jet flops in training

PEKANBARU, Riau: An Air Force Hawk-200 aircraft crashed during a training exercise on Oct. 4 at Segati village in Langgam subdistrict, Pelalawan regency, an officer said on Friday.

Commander of Simpang Tiga Air Base Col. Eris Heryanto told Antara an investigation team had arrived from Jakarta. He said "it will take quite a long time to find out what caused the accident".

The pilot of the British-made training jet, First Lt. Andri Gandri, ejected from the aircraft.

"The pilot is undergoing medical examination in Jakarta," Eris said.

He maintained that all of his 24 jets, including the ill-fated Hawk-200, were in good shape to fly.

Earlier in March, a Hawk-100 crashed on the air base's runway, but its pilot First Lt. Arif Hartono ejected from the aircraft and suffered only minor injuries. (amd)