[NBC] ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistan's air force has suffered its first-ever female pilot fatality after a fighter jet crashed during a training mission Tuesday, officials said.Flying Officer Mariam Mukhtiar was killed after the Chinese-built F7-PG aircraft she was flying suffered a "serious in-flight emergency," according to a statement from the Pakistan Air Force.
Both 23-year-old Mukhtiar and Squadron Leader Saqib Abbasi -- who was also aboard the aircraft but survived -- were praised by the air force for their "professionalism and courage" after they "tried to save the ill-fated aircraft until the very last minute."