MOSCOW: The Russian military says one of its fighter jets have crashed on a training mission in Siberia, and the two crew members have bailed out successfully.

The Defence Ministry says the MiG-31 went down Monday in the forest 40 kilometres (25 miles) northwest of the city of Kansk in the Krasnoyarsk region in eastern Siberia. It said the crew ejected to safety and got in touch with the base.

The Soviet-built MiG-31 is a twin-engine, two-seat heavy interceptor designed to patrol Russia's far-flung borders. The military has been modernising its MiG-31 fleet built during the 1980s, fitting them with modern electronics and weapons control systems.

The Russian air force has sharply increased the number of training missions in recent years, taking advantage of an ambitious military modernisation effort.