A plane crash in Turkey has resulted in the death of Libya’s chief of staff,Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad,and four others. the incident, involving a private Dassault Falcon 50, occurred Sunday night shortly after departing from Ankara en route to Tripoli, disrupting air traffic at Esenboga Airport reuters. The crash comes amidst ongoing efforts to stabilize libya and strengthen military ties with Turkey, where Al-Haddad had been meeting with Turkish defence officials earlier this week.
The chief of staff of the Libyan army, Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad, and four others were killed in a plane crash near Ankara, Turkey. The incident occurred approximately 40 minutes after the aircraft departed from the Turkish capital en route to Tripoli, Libya.
A private Dassault Falcon 50 jet, registration number 9H-DFJ, took off from Ankara at 8:10 p.m. local time (6:10 p.m. Eastern) on Sunday. Contact with the aircraft was lost roughly 40 minutes into the flight. Prior to losing contact, the crew reported a need to make an emergency landing near the Haymana district in Ankara province.
Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya later confirmed that communication was lost with the plane carrying Al-Haddad and four other individuals. The aircraft was scheduled to land in Tripoli, the capital of Libya.
Flight tracking data, according to Reuters, showed other flights being diverted from Ankara’s Esenboga Airport for over an hour. Normal flight operations resumed late Sunday evening.
Turkish television station NTV published security camera footage appearing to show a bright flash near the location where the jet lost contact.
Shortly after 9 p.m. Eastern, the Libyan government issued a brief statement announcing Al-Haddad’s death and expressing national mourning. Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah later stated he received confirmation of the deaths of the army chief and four other military personnel from Turkish authorities.
Around the same time, Turkey’s Interior Minister announced that rescue teams had reached the wreckage site.
The Turkish Ministry of National Defense had announced earlier this week that Al-Haddad would be visiting Ankara, where he met with his Turkish counterpart and other military leaders. The visit underscored ongoing military cooperation between the two countries.
Authors: aa/akr, adso
Source: Reuters, PAP
Image Source: Getty Images
