Turkey: Pilot martyred in military plane crash

ANKARA, Turkey

A Turkish pilot was martyred when a military plane crashed Wednesday in central Turkey, according to the National Defense Ministry.

"An NF-5 aircraft belonging to our Air Force, which was on a training flight in [central] Konya, suffered an accident at 14:15 [1115GMT] for an unknown reason,” the ministry said on Twitter.

It said an investigation has been launched into the accident.

The ministry also said that the plane belonged to Turkish Stars, the aerobatic demonstration team of the Turkish Air Force.

Emergency teams were dispatched to the site after the plane crashed in the Fevzi Cakmak neighborhood in the Karatay district, according to local sources.

Following the accident, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a tweet wished Allah's mercy upon the martyr and conveyed condolences to his family.

Turkey's Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said in a statement: “Our hero fellow soldier was martyred on April 7, 2021. I wish God's mercy on our hero martyr on behalf of myself and members of the National Defense Ministry.”

The ministry also mourned the martyred pilot and shared a video of a performance by the Turkish Stars on Twitter.

“We will remember you with those beautiful images showing you putting your signature in the sky without fear, saluting our Turkish flag and noble nation,” the ministry said in the post.

Among others who extended condolences to the martyr’s family were Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, head of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Kemal Kilicdaroglu, and head of the opposition IYI (Good) Party Meral Aksener.

Pakistan’s Embassy in Ankara also posted a message on Twitter: “Our deepest condolences on the tragic crash of NF-5 aircraft in #Konya today. Our thoughts and prayers go to the family of the martyred pilot, Turkish Armed Forces and the people of Turkey.”