President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed deep sorrow on Wednesday over the tragic crash of a Turkish Air Force C-130 military transport aircraft.

Speaking at the AK Party’s provincial heads meeting in Ankara, President Erdoğan said the crash, which occurred shortly after takeoff near Sighnaghi, close to the Georgia–Azerbaijan border, had “tremendously saddened the entire 86 million” citizens of Türkiye.

“Yesterday, we received extremely heartbreaking news that tremendously saddened the entire 86 million. Our C-130 military cargo plane, carrying our troops who were in Azerbaijan for the fifth anniversary commemorations of the Karabakh victory, crashed shortly after takeoff en route to our country. Twenty children of our homeland were unfortunately martyred in the tragic incident,” Erdoğan said.

He confirmed that the aircraft’s black box has been recovered and that a comprehensive investigation is underway to determine the cause of the crash.

President Erdoğan detailed the government’s immediate response following the tragedy.

“As soon as we took the news of the incident, our ministers of national defense, interior, and foreign affairs got in touch with their counterparts. Search and rescue works were launched immediately. Our UAVs were swiftly mobilized to take footage in cooperation with Georgian authorities,” he said.

By 5 p.m. on the same day, Turkish and Georgian teams located the wreckage of the aircraft, which was subsequently secured for safety reasons. A 46-member crash investigation team was dispatched to the site overnight.

Erdoğan stated that the remains of 19 soldiers have been recovered, while efforts continue to locate the final missing soldier.

The President emphasized that Türkiye, along with Georgia and Azerbaijan, is committed to uncovering all aspects of the tragedy.

“We are investigating all aspects of this tragic incident, which deeply saddened both our Azerbaijani brothers and sisters and our Georgian friends along with our nation,” Erdoğan said, adding that Georgian authorities are fully cooperating and facilitating the process at the highest level.

He also confirmed that he has spoken directly with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, both of whom expressed condolences and offered support in recovery and investigation efforts.

“My nation should rest assured that all the means and resources of the Republic of Türkiye, as well as of Georgia and Azerbaijan, have been mobilized for our heroes,” the President affirmed.

The C-130 aircraft, which had departed from Azerbaijan, was returning to Türkiye after military personnel took part in ceremonies marking the fifth anniversary of Azerbaijan’s victory in Karabakh.

An official mourning period is expected to be declared as Türkiye pays tribute to its fallen soldiers. (ILKHA)