MANILA: Philippine military officials said on Tuesday that rescuers have found the wreckage of a missing fighter jet and the bodies of its two pilots in a mountainous region of a southern province where they were deployed to fight communist rebels.

The FA-50 jet lost communication during the combat mission with other air force aircraft after midnight Tuesday before reaching a target area in southern Bukidnon province.

The other aircraft were able to return safely to an air base in central Cebu province after carrying out assaults, military officials said.