French ‘Red Arrows’ air force aerobatics jet crashes into road

Jet 'swerved' after attempting to land at southern French airport before hitting motorway wall

France's version of the Red Arrows aerobatic display team has suspended all flight demonstrations after one of its jets crashed into a roadside field.

The Patrouille de France (PAF) aircraft came down just outside the perimeter fence of Perpignan's airport in the south of France.

The pilot was reportedly injured but alive after managing to eject from the cockpit.

Footage of the crash scene showed the jet largely intact but with smoke visible.

The Alpha Jet aircraft appeared to hit a wall lining the D117 Peyrestortes Road, which borders the airport's runway.

The PAF had been expected to take part in an airshow near Perpignan, which lies just north of the border with Spain on the Mediterranean coast.

The elite flying team performed a display during the annual Bastille Day military parade over Paris' Champs-Elysees earlier this month.

Colonel Cyrille Duvivier, spokesman for the French Air Force, said the jet "swerved" after attempting to land earlier on Thursday.

"The plane was visibly in trouble, we saw smoke," said one eyewitness, quoted in French media. "He tried several times to land without success."

The exact cause of the crash is not yet known.

The last crash involving a PAF jet was in 2010, when the pilot again successfully ejected. The last fatal crash was in 2002.