▲ This undated file photo, provided by the Air Force, shows its KF-16 fighter. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(LEAD) fighter jet-crash

(LEAD) Fighter jet crashes in Seosan; pilot makes emergency escape

(ATTN: ADDS details, photo)

SEOUL, Sept. 21 (Yonhap) -- A KF-16 fighter jet crashed during takeoff from its base in the southwestern county of Seosan on Thursday, and the lone pilot safely ejected before being taken to a hospital, the Air Force said.

The jet belonging to the 20th Fighter Wing went down at the base in Seosan, some 120 kilometers southwest of Seoul, at 8:20 a.m. while taking off on an unspecified mission, the Air Force said.

"The pilot has made an emergency ejection and is safe," the Air Force said in a text message to reporters.

No civilian damage was reported as the accident occurred within the base.

The Air Force has formed a taskforce to determine the exact cause of the crash.

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