The incident in Pahang state capital Kuantan on Thursday night saw an F/A-18D Hornet consumed by a ball of flames as it took off from the Kuantan Air Base, followed by two flashes as the pilots ejected before the aircraft plunged to the ground.
Both pilots are stable at the Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital in Kuantan.
The crash marks the first loss from Malaysia’s fleet of eight American-made Hornets, procured in 1997 for 1.6 billion ringgit (US$380 million).
But it comes just a week after Sultan Ibrahim, Malaysia’s king, warned of the risks of ageing military equipment, some of which he described as “flying coffins”.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Friday expressed his sympathy for the pilots and called for a thorough probe into what went wrong.
“The authorities are requested to conduct a thorough investigation to identify the cause of the incident and ensure that appropriate safety measures are taken,” Anwar said on X.
The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) confirmed the crash via a statement late on Thursday, saying the incident occurred at 9.05pm.
