A Moroccan F-16 fighter jet has gone missing while it was taking part in a Saudi-led coalition air offensive against the Shiite Houthi militant group in Yemen, the Moroccan army has said.

The army said in a statement that the warplane, which was at the disposal of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, went missing at 6pm local time on Sunday.

According to the statement, the pilot of another plane in the same squadron could not see if the pilot had ejected.

The statement did not reveal details about the location where the aircraft lost contact, but noted that an investigation had been launched into the incident.

Since late March, Saudi Arabia and several of its Arab allies, including Morocco, have been pounding Houthi positions across Yemen. The North African kingdom has contributed six F-16 fighter jets for the offensive.

Riyadh says its campaign is in response to appeals by Yemen's embattled President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi for military intervention against the Houthis.

The Houthis, meanwhile, denounce the offensive as an unwarranted "Saudi-American aggression" on Yemen.