Fighter plane crashes in Lop Buri

A pilot was seriously injured after an F-5 fighter jet crashed during training in Lop Buri province around noon on Friday.

An Air Force spokesman said on Friday that the fighter plane of Wing 21 crashed into a training field in Chai Badan district at around 11am.

The pilot managed to eject himself from the plane. He sustained serious injuries and was rushed to a hospital, said the spokesman .

The air force chief has already received the report about the plane crash and expressed his concern for the injured pilot .

The injured pilot was later named as W/Cdr Sutthimet Ouamma, 36.

He had two broken legs and a broken left arm, was out of danger and his condition stable .

The crashed plane reportedly came to rest in a large pond , but there was debris scattered over the area.

The air force will investigate the incident.

A source said while the plane was almost 40 years old, it had received proper maintenance . The air force has a fleet of 19 jets of the same model based in Ubon Ratchathani province.