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French Formula 1 driver Jules Bianchi, 25, has died from severe head injuries sustained in a crash nine months ago at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix.

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French Formula 1 driver Jules Bianchi has died, nine months after suffering severe head injuries in a crash at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix.

The 25-year-old's family confirmed his death and Bianchi's official Twitter account also announced the news.

Bianchi has been in a coma since crashing his Marussia car into a recovery vehicle in wet conditions in Suzuka last October.

The accident happened when Bianchi's car slid off the track and into a crane picking up German driver Adrian Sutil, who had crashed at the same spot one lap earlier but survived.

The section of the track where the incident occurred was subject to double yellow flags from race stewards, due to Sutil’s crash, but they failed to prevent a second accident.

Bianchi is the first F1 driver to die from injuries sustained in a Grand Prix since Brazilian triple world champion Ayrton Senna was killed at Italy's Imola circuit in 1994.

Bianchi died in hospital near his parents' home in Nice in the south of France.