Caracas, September 18 (teleSUR-RHC)-- A Venezuelan air force jet has crashed after it was deployed to the northwestern region of the country to pursue an aircraft that had been detected by radars entering Venezuelan airspace, the ministry of defense reported on Thursday. 

“At approximately 21:07 hours of September 17, 2015, an airplane Sukhoi-30 of the air force crashed with pilots Cap. Ronald Ramirez and Cap. Jackson Garcia on board,” the Minister of Defense Vladimir Padrino Lopez said in a statement.
    
The military official said that the country's defense systems was activated after an illegal aircraft was detected entering “through the northwestern region of the country toward the border line with Colombia.”

Padrino Lopez explained the region where the plane illegally entered Venezuelan airspace is known for being used by drug traffickers. “They intend to use our territory as a platform to distribute drugs produce in the neighboring country (Colombia) toward Central America and the Caribbean.”

He said an investigation has been immediately launched to determine the causes of the Venezuelan air force plane crash. The defense minister also said a rescue mission has been deployed to search for the pilots.

“Our air force will continue working relentlessly everyday of the year to guarantee the sovereignty and independence” of Venezuela, he said, adding that the armed forces are committed to fighting drug trafficking, Colombian paramilitaries and other crimes that are perpetrated at the border between Colombia and Venezuela.