Taiwan’s air force has suspended training missions for its F-16 fleet and ordered maintenance and inspections as it searches for a pilot who went missing after reportedly parachuting from one of the fighter jets.

The pilot, Hsin Po-yi, took off in an F-16V jet at 6.17pm on Tuesday for routine nighttime training then ejected from the aircraft at around 7.29pm near Hualien county, after which all contact was lost, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA). Both the pilot and the aircraft remain missing.

Hsin graduated from the island’s Air Force Academy in 2019. The air force said he had logged more than 611 flight hours and the aircraft had accrued 3,894 flight hours.

Unlike some versions of the US-made fighters, Taiwan’s F-16 jets do not have an automatic collision avoidance system, raising questions about whether the equipment could have prevented the incident. According to the China Times newspaper, several previous incidents involving Taiwanese jets have been blamed on the absence of these systems, which provide early warning.

The island’s air force and coastguard activated emergency responses after Hsin went missing, sending three vessels and six boats for the rescue efforts. Due to severe sea conditions, low temperatures and high waves, nearby cargo ships and fishing vessels were also contacted for help, according to the coastguard.

CNA said marker buoys had been placed in the area where the pilot was suspected to have landed to estimate his probable location and track ocean currents.