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A pilot has been rescued after being stuck for two hours on a high voltage electricity line after his plane crashed in western France.
The Belgian F-16 fighter jet crashed near the town of Pluvigner in Brittany, damaging a house and setting a field ablaze.
Two pilots were on board and both ejected before the crash. One was safely rescued but the other got stuck on a power line when his parachute got caught.
Emergency workers extracted the pilot safely after cutting off power in the area, and he was been taken to a nearby hospital for medical checks, officials said.
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No injuries have been reported. Surrounding homes were evacuated as the pilot was being taken down and firefighters battled the blaze from the crash.
One of the plane's wings sliced the roof and facade of a house in the town of Pluvigner before plunging into a neighbouring farm field, said Ludovic Kauffer, who lives in the house.
Mr Kauffer was at work at the time of the accident, but his parents were home and described to him the “booms” of the crash.
“My mother is in shock, my father is too,” he said. “The most important thing is that everyone is okay.”
The plane was travelling from Belgium to a naval air base in France when it came down between the towns of Pluvigner and Landaul. – AP