A Libyan military delegation arrived in the Turkish capital, Ankara, today, Wednesday, to inspect the wreckage of the aircraft of the Libyan Chief of Staff, Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad, which crashed near Ankara yesterday, Tuesday.
The Libyan delegation, comprising 22 individuals including five relatives of the victims, headed immediately upon arrival to the crash site, where competent authorities initiated preliminary investigation procedures.
Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya also announced today, Wednesday, the recovery of the black box and the cockpit voice recorder at the wreckage site near the village of Kesikkavak in the Haymana district, south of the capital, Ankara.
Yerlikaya explained in a press conference that search teams found the voice recorder at 2:45 AM local time, while the black box was found at 3:20 AM, noting that concerned authorities have begun the examination and study of both devices to determine the causes of the aviation accident.
Distress Signal Due to Electrical Failure
The Head of the Turkish Presidency’s Communications Directorate, Burhanettin Duran, confirmed earlier that the private plane carrying the Libyan Army Chief of Staff reported an electrical failure and requested an emergency landing shortly before it crashed.
Duran added in a statement that the aircraft, a Dassault Falcon 50, took off from Esenboğa Airport in Ankara at 17:17 GMT yesterday, Tuesday, heading to Tripoli. At 17:33, it notified air traffic control of an emergency caused by an electrical failure.
Libyan and Turkish officials announced the deaths of 8 people in the incident, including 3 crew members, raising widespread concern over the causes of the crash under unknown circumstances.
Duran pointed out that air traffic control redirected the plane back toward Esenboğa Airport, and emergency measures were taken; however, the plane disappeared from radar screens at 17:36 during descent, and contact was lost before it was found to have crashed near the village of Kesikkavak south of Ankara.
Commencement of Investigations
Duran confirmed that search and rescue teams reached the crash site immediately as operations began by the Turkish Ministry of Interior, noting that investigations into the causes of the accident are ongoing with the participation of all competent authorities.
For its part, the internationally recognized Libyan government stated that the deceased included Chief of Staff of the Army Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad, along with the Chief of Staff of the Land Forces, the Director of the Military Manufacturing Authority, a consultant to the General Chief of Staff, and a photographer from the Chief of Staff’s media office.
Libyan officials explained that the aircraft was chartered and registered in Malta, emphasizing that its ownership, technical record, and operational history will be subject to examination within the course of the investigation to reach the truth.
United News Network – UNN Arabic
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