NEW DELHI

A French-made fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed on Thursday in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, officials said.

“A Mirage 2000 aircraft of the IAF crashed near Shivpuri (Gwalior), during a routine training sortie today, after encountering a system malfunction,” the air force said in a statement.

Sharing that both pilots ejected safely, the air force said it ordered an inquiry into the incident.

The Mirage 2000, a multirole fighter jet built by France's Dassault Aviation, had it first flight in 1978.

According to the Dassault website, India is among the eight countries where the fighter jet has been exported.