New information has emerged regarding the crash of a Turkish C-130 “Hercules” military transport aircraft in Georgian territory.
According to a statement from the Turkish Ministry of National Defense, there were 20 military personnel on board the aircraft, including the flight crew. The Ministry stated that search and rescue operations are ongoing.
It has been revealed that the aircraft took off from Trabzon this morning and landed in Ganja. Modern.az reports this, citing the Turkish press.
The aircraft departed from Trabzon at 09:50 and landed at Ganja military aerodrome at 11:06. After the completion of planned technical and logistics procedures, the aircraft took off again at 13:20 for its return flight to Turkey.
However, approximately 27 minutes after takeoff, contact with the aircraft was lost and radar signals disappeared. The Georgian press writes that although the crew attempted to transmit information about a malfunction, they were unable to do so due to a serious problem in the navigation and GPS system.
A joint search and rescue operation by Azerbaijani, Georgian, and Turkish forces is being conducted in the area where the aircraft crashed. Although difficult weather conditions are affecting the progress of the work, searches are reported to be continuing.
It should be recalled that the C-130 “Hercules” is a multi-purpose military transport aircraft manufactured in the USA. The Turkish Armed Forces primarily use this model for cargo and personnel transport, humanitarian aid, and evacuation operations. The aircraft is capable of carrying up to 20 tons of cargo, landing on short runways, and flying in difficult conditions.
Currently, the causes of the crash are being investigated, and the Turkish Ministry of National Defense has announced that it will inform the public about the incident.
