Two Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) pilots managed to cheat death by ejecting from their aircraft before it crashed near Pekan in Pahang.

In a media statement, RMAF said the Aermacchi MB339CM encountered technical difficulties during a training flight at 12.54pm.

"The RMAF will form an investigating committee to find the cause of the accident," it added.

The Pahang Fire and Rescue Department said eyewitnesses saw the aircraft crash into paddy fields in Kampung Serun, Nenasi, about 50km from Pekan town.

The aircraft was based at the Kuantan RMAF base.