Electrical failure reported before jet carrying Libya army chief crashed near Ankara

Libya’s army chief of staff, Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad, was killed on Tuesday when a private jet carrying him and members of his entourage crashed near Ankara shortly after departing Turkey’s capital, Libyan and Turkish officials said.

The Dassault Falcon 50 jet took off from Ankara’s Esenboga Airport at around 1710–1717 GMT en route to Tripoli after Al-Haddad concluded an official visit to Turkey. Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft reported an emergency caused by an electrical malfunction and requested an emergency landing, according to Turkey’s head of communications, Burhanettin Duran.

Air traffic control redirected the plane back toward Esenboga Airport and emergency procedures were initiated. However, radar contact was lost at around 1736 GMT while the jet was descending for landing. Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said contact was lost while the aircraft was flying over Ankara’s Haymana district. The wreckage was later found near Kesikkavak village in the area.

Eight people were killed in the crash, including three crew members, according to Libyan and Turkish officials. Libya’s internationally recognised Government of National Unity (GNU) said the dead included Al-Haddad, the commander of Libya’s ground forces, the director of the military manufacturing authority, an adviser to the chief of staff, and a photographer from the chief of staff’s office.

Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah described the incident as a “tragic and painful” loss for the country. “This grave loss is a great loss for the nation, for the military institution, and for all the people,” he said in a statement.

Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said an investigation into the crash was under way, while Duran said search and rescue operations were launched by Turkey’s Interior Ministry and that inquiries were continuing with the involvement of all relevant authorities.

Libyan officials said the aircraft was leased and registered in Malta, adding that its ownership and technical history would be examined as part of the investigation. Walid Ellafi, Libya’s state minister for political affairs and communication, said it was unclear when a preliminary crash report would be ready.

The GNU announced three days of official mourning and said Dbeibah had instructed the defence minister to dispatch an official delegation to Ankara to follow developments in the investigation.

Turkey’s defence ministry had earlier announced Al-Haddad’s visit, saying he held meetings with Turkish Defence Minister Yasar Guler, Selcuk Bayraktaroglu, and other senior Turkish military officials.

The crash occurred a day after Turkey’s parliament voted to extend the mandate of Turkish troops deployed in Libya by two additional years. NATO member Turkey has been a key military and political backer of Libya’s Tripoli-based government since 2020, when it deployed personnel to support and train its forces and later signed a disputed maritime demarcation agreement.

In 2022, Ankara and Tripoli also reached a preliminary energy exploration accord, opposed by Egypt and Greece. More recently, Turkey has sought to broaden its engagement under a “One Libya” policy, increasing contacts with Libya’s eastern-based authorities alongside its support for the GNU.