Indonesian fighter jet catches fire before takeoff

Jakarta: An F-16 jet fighter of the Indonesian Air Force caught fire on Thursday before taking off from Jakarta’s Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport, a military official said.  The accident occurred when the plane was about to take off for an exercise to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Asian African Conference in Jakarta and Bandung city, spokesman of the Indonesian Air Force, Air Marshal Hadi Cahyanto, said.  “The plane was on fire before flying for an exercise for security of the conference,” he told Xinhua news agency.  The pilot escaped unhurt and an investigation will be conducted to find out the cause of the accident, he added.