KUANTAN (The Star/Asia News Network) - Two Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) personnel were killed when their Hawk 108 fighter jet crashed 51km from the RMAF's air base in Kuantan on Thursday.

The Hawk 108 training fighter jet took off from the Kuantan air force base at 11am and lost contact half an hour later at 11.30am.

The Hawk 108 is an export version of the Hawk 100, a two-seat advanced weapons trainer with additional avionics, optional forward-looking infrared, a redesigned wing and hands-on throttle-and-stick.

The aircraft is fitted with a BAE Sky Guardian Radar warning receiver and wingtip air-to-air missile rails.

The Hawk 108 is a two-seater version of the Hawk 208 fighter jet, which was used in air strike missions in Lahad Datu during Ops Daulat in 2013.