Turkey Collaborates With Azerbaijan And Georgia To Investigate The Crash Of A Military Transport Aircraft

JAKARTA - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said an investigation had been launched on a military cargo plane that crashed in Georgia on its way home from Azerbaijan, while conveying condolences to the dead and the people.

Speaking at a meeting of his party's provincial leadership in the capital Ankara, President Erdogan said 19 bodies had been found from the crash site, while the search for remaining victims was still ongoing, with the plane's black box being found.

"All the resources of the Republic of Turkey, along with Georgia and Azerbaijan, have been deployed to our heroes. We are monitoring efforts on the ground from time to time. We will ensure that the necessary checks are carried out very carefully, so that all aspects of the incident can be fully revealed," President Erdogan said. , reported by Daily Sabah November 13.

President Erdogan further warned about disinformation, saying, "I ask our nation to be aware of lies and not to trust those who demean themselves for the sake of dirty politics."

He said that as soon as the incident news was received, the Ministry of Defense, together with the Ministry of Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs, contacted their colleagues.

The plane took off from Ganja Airport in western Azerbaijan on Tuesday afternoon, before crashing shortly after crossing the border into eastern Georgia, according to a Defense Ministry statement, while the cause of the crash is not yet known.

Earlier on the same day, the Ministry of Defense said all 20 soldiers on board had been killed. The ministry published photos of 20 military personnel who died on social media platform X on Wednesday morning.

Those who died were Lt. Col. G\"okhan Korkmaz, Major Serdar Uslu, Major Nihat Ilgen, Lt. Col. Satu C\"eyet Kandemir, First Lieutenant Emre Merccan, Sergeant Major Nuri zcan, Sergeant Major Umit Ince, Sergeant. Major Hamdi Armamen Kaplan, Sergeant Major Burak zkan, Sergeant Major Ilker Aykut, Sergeant Major AkENT Karaku, Sergeant Major Emrah Kuran, Sergeant Major Ramazan Ya

The Georgia and Turkish search and rescue teams have been deployed to the region. Authorities are investigating whether flight safety breaches or operational rules contribute to the accident.

Georgia's Interior Ministry has confirmed the plane crashed in the Sighnakhi region, "about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the Georgia state border" with Azerbaijan.

Georgia air traffic control said the plane disappeared from radar shortly after entering its airspace "without sending a distress signal" and had been notified of the crash by emergency services.