Turkey has confirmed that 20 of its military personnel were killed in a plane crash in Georgia, near the Azerbaijani border, while en route to Turkey.
The plane crash took place on Tuesday afternoon in Georgia’s eastern Kakheti region after the plane, a C130 military cargo aircraft, took off from Ganja Airport in Azerbaijan.
As details on the crash continued to emerge throughout the day, Reuters cited local media as saying that the plane carried both Turkish and Azerbaijani personnel. Azerbaijan has, however, not announced any casualties as a result of the crash.
Georgia’s Interior Ministry said that the plane crashed approximately 5 kilometres from the border in the Sighnaghi municipality. They added that the crash was being investigated as a violation of safety or operation rules of air transport which resulted in the loss of human life.
According to information shared by Flightradar24, a real-time aircraft tracker, the aircraft is believed to have departed from Ganja Airport at 14:19 local time.
We’re following reports of a Lockheed C-130E Hercules, belonging to the Turkish Air Force, that is suspected to have crashed in Georgia, close to the border of Azerbaijan. Evidence points to the aircraft being #TUAF543, which departed Ganja Airport in Azerbaijan at 10:19 UTC.… pic.twitter.com/xqrEWbMiRk
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) November 11, 2025
While no details have yet emerged as to what caused the crash, users on social media platforms have suggested the aircraft might have been targeted or shot down — with some pointing fingers at Russia, although no evidence was provided.
On Wednesday, Azerbaijani pro-government media outlet APA published an article dismissing the ‘unrealistic conspiracy theories’ shared through ‘various opinions’ on social media and media outlets.
They reported that the plane had landed at Ganja Airport on Tuesday, and remained there for two hours. Its crew provided technical support for Turkish F-16 aircrafts that participated in the military parade commemorating Azerbaijan’s victory in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War earlier during the week.
‘There were no explosives or devices inside the plane, only spare parts for the F-16 aircraft’, APA’s source has said.
The outlet has also cited sources as saying the aircraft was last overhauled in 2020, adding that ‘initial observations suggest that there are no traces of external impact on the fuselage of the aircraft’. APA additionally noted that the first inspection of the Azerbaijani Airlines (AZAL) plane that crashed in late December 2024 showed that its fuselage had sustained ‘numerous holes formed as a result of external impact’.
The AZAL crash marked a momentarily dramatic shift in relations between Baku and Moscow, which appears to have subsided after publicly apologising for the deadly crash, which claimed the lives of 38 people, and admitting that had been caused by a Russian anti-aircraft missile.
Nate Ostiller
A Turkish military cargo plane has crashed on the Georgia–Azerbaijan border while en route to Turkey from Azerbaijan.
Reports of the crash first emerged on Tuesday afternoon, with the Turkish National Defence Ministry confirming a C130 military cargo plane crashed on the Georgia–Azerbaijan border shortly after.
‘Search and rescue operations have been initiated in coordination with Azerbaijani and Georgian authorities’, the ministry said.
Georgia’s Interior Ministry said that the plane crashed approximately 5 kilometres from the border in the Sighnaghi municipality. They added that the crash was being investigated as a violation of safety or operation rules of air transport which resulted in the loss of human life.
Shortly after Turkey confirmed the plane had crashed, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev extended his condolences to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
‘We were deeply saddened by the tragic news of the loss of servicemen in the crash of a Turkish Air Force military cargo plane’, he said, according to Azerbaijani state-run media outlet Azertac.
‘In this moment of sorrow, I share your grief and, on behalf of myself and the people of Azerbaijan, extend heartfelt condolences to you, the families and loved ones of the deceased, and the fraternal people of Türkiye.’
According to information shared by Flightradar24, a real-time aircraft tracker, the aircraft is believed to have departed from Ganja Airport at 14:19 local time. crash site.
Early reports of the crash were accompanied by unverified footage showing a plane spiralling down before crashing. The footage was shared by several media outlets from Azerbaijan and Georgia.
