The aircraft plunged in an area between Al-Ahsa and Buqayq, around 300 kilometers (185 miles) east of Riyadh, during an exercise, the source said, requesting anonymity.

An official at the defense ministry announced later that the aircraft fell at 11:40 am (0840 GMT) in the King Abdul Aziz airbase "while participating in a joint exercise, Gulf Spears, with air forces from other member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)", the official SPA news agency reported.

The cause of the crash is being investigated, but the pilot was named as First Officer Mohammed Ahmad al-Kubaiby, SPA added.

The GCC groups Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates alongside Saudi Arabia.

A Saudi air force captain died in May when the Hawk aircraft he was piloting crashed during an aerobatic exercise.

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