NEW DELHI, May 27 (RIA Novosti) - An Indian-manufactured MiG-21 fighter jet crashed on Wednesday in eastern India, the fifth aircraft loss this year for the Indian Air Force, an IAF spokesman told RIA Novosti.

Wing Commander Tarun Kumar Singha said the crash occurred early in the morning near the Jodhpur airbase. He said that the pilot had ejected safely and there was no damage caused on the ground.

This is the third incident for the Indian Air Force, which has some 200 MiGs, involving Russian jets in the last month, a MiG-27 crashed on May 15 and a Su-30MKI on April 30.

The safety record of MiG-21s, produced in India under Russian licensing, has improved in recent years. In 2003 India and Russia began a cooperation program aimed at improving the mechanical reliability of the country's MiGs.

A crash investigation has been started into the incident.