Air force mounts search for missing F-16 jet pilot

A search and rescue operation was mounted off the east coast in a bid to save the pilot of an F-16 jet fighter that lost contact with air traffic controllers 28 minutes after taking off from a Hualien air base in eastern Taiwan at 6:50 p.m. yesterday.

The military has dispatched air force and navy personnel on a helicopter rescue and search mission.

Coast guard ships and some private fishing vessels also joined the search operation.

Military spokeswoman Chi Yu-lan said the single-seat F-16 fighter was on a routine training mission, and added air force officers were still checking further details about the incident.

Yang Feng-shen, a spokesman at the Hualien Air Base, identified the missing pilot as Major Ting Shih-pao.

He said Ting was on a routine training mission to protect the air space of eastern Hualien and Taitung counties when the incident took place.

Initial signs show that Ting could have ejected himself from his plane, Yang noted.

The search and rescue mission will mainly cover an area 43 nautical miles southeast of Hualien.

Ting, 34, has logged a total of 1,234.5 hours of flight, including 400 hours with the F-16 fighter jet.

He is married and has one son, Yang said.