Turkiye briefly grounds C-130 planes after crash kills 20 navy personnel

Turkiye has briefly grounded its C-130 navy cargo planes as a precaution, the Defence Ministry introduced on Thursday (November 13, 2025), following a crash in Georgia that claimed the lives of all 20 navy personnel on board.

The cargo aircraft was flying from Ganja, Azerbaijan to Turkiye when it crashed in Georgia’s Sighnaghi municipality, near the Azerbaijani border, on Tuesday (November 11, 2025). The reason behind the crash is being investigated.

The navy personnel had been a part of a unit chargeable for the upkeep and restore of Turkish F-16 jets that had flown to Azerbaijan to take part in that nation’s Victory Day celebrations. The occasion marked Azerbaijan’s 2020 navy success over Armenia for management of the Karabakh area, recognized internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh, a battle that had lasted almost 4 many years.

The National Defense Ministry mentioned C-130 flights had been briefly suspended to permit the plane to endure detailed technical inspections. Only those that efficiently move the checks could be allowed to renew flying, the ministry mentioned in an announcement.

C-130 navy cargo planes are extensively utilized by Turkey’s armed forces for transporting personnel and dealing with logistical operations.

Turkiye dispatched an accident investigation staff to find out the reason for the crash. The ministry mentioned the aircraft’s flight knowledge recorder and cockpit voice knowledge recorder had been despatched to Turkey and had been underneath examination in Ankara.

The plane was bought from Saudi Arabia in 2012 and was added to Turkey’s Air Force stock in 2014 after present process upkeep procedures. It later underwent modernization and had been in use since 2022. Its most up-to-date scheduled upkeep was accomplished on Oct. 12, the ministry mentioned.

The ministry mentioned there was no ammunition on board the plane when it crashed.

Debris from the plane was scattered throughout a number of places, and the stays of the twentieth sufferer had been recovered on Thursday.

Funerals can be held after the stays are returned to Turkey and autopsies are accomplished.