Finnish air force training jet crashes, pilot safe

An air force training jet crashed in western Finland after the engine stalled and the pilot ejected.

An air force training jet crashed in western Finland after the engine stalled and the pilot ejected, a military spokeswoman said on Friday. No one was injured.

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The British-made Hawk jet crashed late on Thursday as the pilot was practicing approaches at an air field near Kruunupyy, 400 kilometers northwest of Helsinki, air force spokeswoman Leena Tiainen said.

"The aircraft was climbing when he heard some noise, then the engine stopped," Tiainen said. "He tried to restart the engine but couldn't."

The pilot ejected safely as the plane tumbled toward the ground and crashed near the air field. An accident commission was investigating the engine failure.

The crash was the 10th accident involving a Hawk training jet since the Finnish Air Force started using the planes in 1980, Tiainen said.