The Myanmar military has lost contact with a training jet and has kicked off a search for the missing plane, the military said on Tuesday.

The plane left the southwestern town of Pathein in the morning, only to lose communication at 9:18 am, the military said in a statement.

It was not immediately clear how many people were on board, but the statement identified one pilot by name.

Aircraft incidents, both civilian and military, are not uncommon in the southeast Asian country.