Turkish C-130 Transport Plane Crashes in Kakheti, Georgia
A Turkish military Lockheed C-130 transport aircraft carrying at least 20 people has crashed in eastern Georgia near the border with Azerbaijan, Turkiye’s Defence Ministry said. The plane had departed Ganja in Azerbaijan and was en route back to Turkiye when it went down in the Sighnaghi area of the Kakheti region, around 5 km (3.1 miles) from the Georgian–Azerbaijan border.
Officials have not yet released a full casualty count or a confirmed cause of the accident. Both Turkiye and Azerbaijan have indicated that fatalities have occurred. Turkiye’s Defence Ministry said 20 Turkish personnel, including flight crew, were on board; it did not specify whether there were passengers of other nationalities. Local media reported that Azerbaijani personnel may also have been travelling on the aircraft.
What officials have said
Georgia’s air navigation service, Sakaeronavigatsia, said the aircraft disappeared from radar shortly after entering Georgian airspace and did not transmit a distress signal before the crash. Dramatic video published by Azerbaijani outlets appears to show the aircraft striking the ground and producing a large cloud of black smoke.
Turkiye’s Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said Georgia’s interior minister, Gela Geladze, arrived at the scene and that search-and-rescue operations were underway.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he was “deeply saddened” and offered condolences to the families of those killed.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, quoted by Turkiye’s state news agency Anadolu, said the loss of life in the accident on Georgian soil was deeply shocking.
A representative of the United States embassy in Turkiye also expressed sympathy and said the US stood in solidarity with its Turkish partners. Rescue teams from Georgia and neighbouring countries were reported to be working at the crash site as authorities investigate the cause.
Ongoing response
Search-and-rescue operations and on-site investigations were continuing. Authorities have not released a final casualty figure or a timeline for the investigation; updates are expected as officials from Turkiye, Azerbaijan and Georgia coordinate recovery and inquiry efforts.
