Pakistani fighter jet crashes in Jalalabad, pilot captured, say Afghanistan military, police

A Pakistani jet has crashed in Jalalabad city and the pilot captured alive, the Afghan military and police said on Saturday (February 28, 2026), with residents telling AFP the man parachuted from the plane before being detained.

“A Pakistani fighter jet was shot down in the sixth district of Jalalabad city, and its pilot was captured alive,” police spokesman Tayeb Hammad said.

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Wahidullah Mohammadi, spokesman for the military in eastern Afghanistan, confirmed the Pakistani jet was downed by Afghan forces “and the pilot was captured alive”.

The announcement followed an AFP journalist hearing a jet over Jalalabad, followed by the sound of two explosions from the direction of the city’s airport.

Pakistan’s military and Information Ministry did not immediately reply to AFP’s request for comment.

Pakistan launched air strikes on Friday (February 27) on the Afghan capital Kabul and southern Kandahar, where Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada is based.

The aerial attacks followed Afghan forces starting a border offensive against Pakistan late on Thursday (February 26), which the Taliban government said came in response to prior Pakistani strikes on Afghanistan.