ANKARA - A Greek pilot was killed when his F-16 fighter jet collided with a Turkish warplane in mid-air over the Aegean Sea on Tuesday, the Turkish foreign ministry said.
"It was learnt with sadness that the Greek pilot lost his life," the ministry said in a statement.
The Turkish pilot was rescued after the incident, it said.
The Turkish army said the two F-16 planes collided in mid-air 35 miles (55 kilometers) south of the Greek island of Rhodes.
Greek warplanes had attempted to intercept Turkish jets on "routine training flights" in international air space, it said.
The Turkish pilot ejected and was rescued by a Panama-registered cargo ship sailing in the region, maritime officials told the Anatolia news agency.
He was then repatriated by a Turkish army helicopter.
Officials in Athens said earlier that a navy flotilla and a Super Puma search-and-rescue helicopter were searching for the Greek pilot at the crash site.
05/23/2006 15:46 GMT