An Indian Air Force HPT-32 trainer crashed on Friday in Medak district on the outskirts of Hyderabad killing its trainee pilot.
IAF sources speculate that the two-seat primary trainer aircraft might have crashed due to technical failure.
It was cadet Sparsh Rana's second flight, they added.
The aircraft took off on a routine training flight at 1110 IST and lost contact with the radar 20 minutes later, the sources said.
A court of inquiry has been ordered to find out the cause of the crash.