All 13 Turkish soldiers on board a Cougar military helicopter were killed when it crashed after getting caught in a high-voltage power line in the Senoba district of Turkey's southeastern Sirnak province, the army said on Wednesday.
In a statement, the army said the AS 532 Cougar had crashed shortly after taking off around 1855 GMT on Wednesday. It said emergency search and rescue teams were dispatched to the area and evaluations were underway at the crash site.
Broadcaster CNN Turk said Defence Minister Fikri Isik would travel to Sirnak, while presidential sources said President Tayyip Erdogan had been briefed on the crash following a National Security Council meeting earlier on Wednesday.
Pakistan Expresses Condolences:
Pakistan expressed deepest condolences to Government and people of Turkey on the crash.
A Foreign Office statement said here Thursday, “The tragic news of the military helicopter crash in Sirnak Province of Turkey on 31 May 2017, resulting in the martyrdom of 13 military personnel onboard, has been received with deep sense of sorrow and grief in Pakistan.”
The statement said that the Government and people of Pakistan would like to convey their deepest condolences to the brotherly people of Turkey at the loss of so many precious lives as a result of this tragic crash.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this tragedy as well as with all those who have lost their loved ones,” it said.
