Turkey confirms 20 officers killed in military plane crash

Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey announced Wednesday that all 20 Turkish military personnel on board the cargo aircraft that crashed near the Azerbaijan–Georgia border a day prior have died.

In a post on X, Ankara's Defense Ministry shared photos of the fallen officers with the message, "Our heroic comrades-in-arms" were "martyred on November 11, 2025, due to the crash of our C-130 military cargo aircraft, which was en route from Azerbaijan to our country, on the Georgia-Azerbaijan border."

The statement quoted Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler as stating, "On behalf of myself and the members of the Ministry of National Defense, I wish God's mercy upon our heroic martyrs and extend my condolences and patience to their sorrowful families and our noble nation."


A day earlier, the ministry had announced that a military cargo aircraft had crashed near the Azerbaijan-Georgia border, adding that "search and rescue operations have begun in coordination with the authorities" in Baku and Tbilisi.

Burhanettin Duran, head of the Turkish Communications Directorate - an affiliate of the Turkish presidency - also confirmed the incident, urging that "utmost importance to consider only the statements of our official institutions and to refrain from sharing unverified information."

Videos and images circulating on social media purportedly show the moment the aircraft lost control and crashed near the Azerbaijan-Georgia border.

Turkey and Azerbaijan share a close alliance often described as “one nation, two states,” built on deep cultural and linguistic ties.

During Azerbaijan’s conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020, Turkey provided strong political and military support, with Turkish drones playing a key role in Baku’s victory.