Twenty Turkish Soldiers Killed in Cargo Plane Crash East of Georgia
The Turkish Ministry of Defense announced on Wednesday that all twenty military personnel aboard the military cargo plane that crashed on Tuesday in eastern Georgia were killed while returning from Azerbaijan.
Turkish authorities have released the names and photos of the twenty soldiers, but have not yet clarified the cause of the crash involving the C-130 aircraft.
After informing that twenty military personnel were on the plane, Turkey confirmed on Wednesday that there were no survivors from the incident.
The aircraft had taken off from Ganja in western Azerbaijan heading to Turkey and crashed shortly after entering Georgian airspace on Tuesday afternoon.
The wreckage of the plane was spotted in the afternoon a few kilometers from the Azerbaijani border.
Videos recorded by witnesses showed the plane spiraling down, leaving behind white smoke, before crashing and emitting thick black smoke.
In these clips, the aircraft appears to have disintegrated during its fall.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke on Tuesday afternoon about “martyrs” without providing any details on casualties.
Georgian authorities have announced the opening of an investigation to determine the circumstances of the accident.
The C-130 Hercules is a military cargo aircraft developed by Lockheed Martin and has been in production since the 1950s.
