An aircraft plunged Friday morning during an air show in Pucheng county, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. There are no reports of casualties, and witnesses said they saw the pilot was ejected before the bomber fell. [Photo/Xinhua]

A Chinese military jet plunged to the ground after completing its planned manoeuvres during an air show in Pucheng County, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on Friday morning.

The jet, a twin-seat JH-7 "Flying Leopard", is also known as FBC-1. Central China Television (CCTV) footage shows one pilot ejecting from the cockpit shortly before the crash. The air show's organizing committee said the ejecting pilot's parachute failed to fully open, due to the relatively low altitude of the jet when it encountered problems. The pilot sustained injuries and was immediately rushed to hospital.

His co-pilot, who apparently did not eject from the stricken jet, remains missing, according to event organisers.

The fighter jet crashed approximately two kilometres from the spectator area, and no one in the crowd was hurt. The air show resumed shortly after the crash.

The JH-7 is China's first domestically designed fighter-bomber. The twin-engine jet was delivered to the Air Force of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in 1992, four years after it completed its maiden flight in December 1988.

The JH-7 has a combat radius of 1,650 kilometers with maximum speed of 1.70 Mach.

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