Turkey's defence ministry has said that 20 soldiers were killed in the crash of its military aircraft in Georgia yesterday, as inspectors continued to seek clues as to what caused the cargo plane to go down.
The C-130 plane took off from Azerbaijan for Turkey and crashed in Georgia.
Turkey has not yet provided a reason for its deadliest military incident since 2020.
It said Turkish and Georgian authorities have begun inspections at the site, in the Sighnaghi municipality of Georgia's Kakheti district.
The leaders of Azerbaijan and Georgia, as well as the NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, have all conveyed condolences.
Tom Barrack, the US Ambassador to Turkey, has also expressed his country's solidarity with Turkey after the crash.
Turkish Defence Minister Yasar Guler spoke to his Georgian and Azerbaijani counterparts, as well as Azerbaijan's chief of staff, to discuss search and rescue operations.
US firm Lockheed Martin, which makes the C-130 Hercules that is widely used by air forces around the world, expressed its condolences and said it was committed to helping Turkey in any way during the investigation.
The C-130 Hercules is a cargo, troop and equipment carrier aircraft. It is described as a four-engine, turboprop military transport aircraft that can make use of unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings.
Its versatile airframe has enabled it to be used for other purposes as well, including as a gunship and for airborne assault and reconnaissance operations. It is now viewed as one of the main tactical airlifters for many militaries.
