Pilot dies after aerobatic plane crashes

A small aerobatic plane crashed into the sea Friday during an airshow off the coast of southeast France with the pilot trapped inside, officials said.

The Fouga Magister aircraft was performing at Le Lavandou just before a demonstration by the French Air Force's elite acrobatic flying team, a French air force spokesman told AFP.

Built after World War II, the Fouga Magister was for many years used by the French army as a trainer jet and aerobatic plane. It has no ejection seat.

A rescue operation quickly found the body of the 65-year-old pilot, the prefecture and officials said.

The show was cancelled due to the "tragic circumstances", military officials said.

On Wednesday, two French pilots died after two Rafale fighter jets collided in mid-air in eastern France, in a rare accident involving the country's leading military jet.

A third pilot ejected following the crash over Colombey-les-Belles, a town in northeastern France.