A Yemeni engineer also died when the Russian-made Antonov plane crashed at the base in the southern province of Lahej. A local security official said a technical fault was likely the cause of the accident.
Lahej shares a border with Abyan province, where the Yemeni army is fighting to regain control of territory seized by suspected Al-Qaeda militants during months of protests against President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Months of political upheaval have weakened central government control over whole swaths of the country.
Late on Monday, an Uzbek doctor was kidnapped in the northern province and tribal stronghold of Maarib.
A tribal source said the doctor had been kidnapped by tribesmen to put pressure on the government to release some jailed comrades.
