AMMAN, Jordan — A Syrian fighter pilot flew his plane to Jordan on Thursday and asked for political asylum, the first defection of an air force pilot with his plane during the 15-month uprising against President Bashar Assad.

Jordanian Information Minister Sameeh Maaytah confirmed that the pilot had defected.

Initially, three Jordanian officials said the Russian-made MiG-21 made an emergency landing at the northern King Hussein Air Base in Mafraq, 70 kilometers (43 miles) north of the Jordanian capital and near the Syrian border.