Malaysian authorities have recovered the body of a pilot who crashed his fighter jet into the sea nearly a month ago, the country's deputy premier said Tuesday.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak said the 31-year-old pilot was found Tuesday in wreckage of the BAE Hawk 108 fighter jet off Malaysia's east coast, south of the town of Kuantan.

"The body was taken to the Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital in Kuantan to be identified by the family members," Najib was quoted as saying by the state Bernama news agency.

The fighter jet crashed into the sea off the eastern coast of southern Johor state on June 1, sparking a month-long search for the pilot, Muhammad Rohaizan Abdul Rahman.

Muhammad Rohaizan was undergoing a normal training mission in the single-seat aircraft when he lost contact with the Royal Malaysian Air Force base (RMAF) in Kuantan, authorities said.

Najib said the RMAF was conducting an investigation into the cause of the crash.

Full military honours

In a related development, Rohaizan's remains were laid to rest at the Kampung Pantai Muslim Cemetery in Malacca this morning with full military honours.

According to Bernama , the body was flown from Kuantan using RMAF's Charlie C130 transport aircraft and arrived at the Batu Berendam airport at 12.30 am.

The remains was then taken to his grandmother's house in Kampung Permatang, Kuala Sungai Baru before being buried.

Also present were Malacca Chief Minister Mohd Ali Rustam and Division 1 Commander Maj Gen Bashir Abu Bakar, state Multimedia, Science and Technology Committee chair Abdul Karim Sulaiman, and senior RMAF officers.

Rohaizan's father Abdul Rahman Rahimin, 60, his wife Nik Fazreen Irtiza Husein, 31, and the eldest of his three children Nik Maisara Faireen Putri, 5, were at the burial.

Meanwhile, his grandmother Hawa Mat Zin, 78, said she was very proud of her pilot grandson who was close to her and always wanted to become a pilot.

"In the 28 days he was missing, I prayed for his safety," she said.