A US Air Force (USAF) operated F-16 Fighting Falcon multirole fighter aircraft, piloted by a Taiwanese trainee, has crashed near Bagdad, Arizona.

The aircraft, assigned to the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base (AFB), crashed during a training flight on 21 January. The US military first responders are working to secure the crash site.

According to media reports, human remains have been discovered at the crash site.

"All indications lead me to believe that the pilot did not survive the accident."

56th Fighter Wing Brigadier General Scott Pleus was quoted by Associated Press as saying: "All indications lead me to believe that the pilot did not survive the accident."

In August, an F-16 aircraft assigned to the 480th Fighter Squadron from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, crashed during a training flight at US Army Garrison Bavaria in Grafenwoehr.

The F-16 pilot was able to successfully eject from the aircraft and also managed to jettison the fuel tanks over an unpopulated area.

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In June, an Iraqi Air Force’s F-16 fighter jet crashed in Arizona near the US-Mexico border during a night training mission.

The accident involved an Iraqi student pilot, who was on a training programme with the Arizona Air National Guard’s 162nd Wing.

Roughly 20 large aircraft operated by USAF were destroyed in accidents last year including six drones in Afghanistan, four in the Horn of Africa and three in Iraq, The Washington Post reported earlier.