A Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) Hawk 208 fighter jet crashed at the Labuan airbase today, killing its pilot.

Air Force Deputy Chief Lt Gen Azizan Ariffin said the incident took place at 8.50 am when the aircraft was on its final (14th) runway after touching down at the airbase.

The pilot, ranked captain from the 15th Squadron from the Butterworth RMAF base, was undergoing a familiarisation exercise before the crash, he said.

"The aircraft took off from the Labuan airbase at 7.41 am today," he was quoted as saying in a Bernama report.

He said the identity of the pilot had been withheld as his family had not been informed of the crash.