An IAF jet trainer aircraft crashed at Topaghat village on Tuesday on the Odisha-Jharkhand border.
The pilot ejected to safety but sustained injuries and was admitted to a hospital in Jharkhand.
The aircraft had crashed into the Subarnarekha river bed.
A huge crowd of locals gathered at the spot before police and fire brigade personnel cordoned the area.
A team of IAF officers from the Kaleikunda air base also reached the spot.