NEW DELHI -- Four people were killed and nine injured when an Indian military Jaguar fighter jet crashed into a residential area during a training flight in the northern Indian state of Haryana, Star news television reported Tuesday.

The report said the crash occurred in the military cantonment town of Ambala in Haryana. The pilot ejected to safety, it added.

A defense official confirmed the crash but could not immediately say if there had been casualties, AFP reported.

"The Jaguar aircraft crashed on a routine sortie.

We have sent a rescue team from the Ambala air force station to the crash site," air force spokesman R.K. Dhingra told AFP. "We know the pilot bailed out in time but cannot confirm any casualties or damages right now."

An Indian Air Force MIG-21 aircraft crashed on September 9 in the same town.

Last month, the Indian military, reeling after a fatal mid-air collision between two of its mainstay Ilyushin-38 naval spy planes, announced it was planning to upgrade its crash-plagued air force.

Air Chief S. Krishnaswamy said the 1,200-aircraft Indian Air Force would be updating its strike force with new aircraft, helicopters and radar.

The air force has lost some 220 MIG-21s worth tens of millions of dollars in crashes between 1991 and 2000, killing around 100 pilots.

The Indian MIGs have earned the dubious nickname of "flying coffins" for their poor track record.