S-70 military helicopter crashes in Malatya, Türkiye, killing four soldiers

A military helicopter crashed in southern Turkey on Thursday, killing four personnel, the Turkish Defense Ministry said.

The aircraft crashed for unknown reasons in Samankoy, a neighborhood on the southern outskirts of the provincial capital Malatya, in the early evening. Daily Sabah reported that the helicopter went down in the Samanköy neighborhood of Malatya's Yeşilyurt district.

“As a result of an accident involving our S-70 helicopter in Malatya, for a reason not yet determined, 4 of our heroic comrades-in-arms aboard the helicopter were martyred,” the ministry said in a social media post. “We pray that God will have mercy on our martyrs and offer our condolences and prayers for strength to their grieving families, our Turkish Armed Forces, and our noble nation.”

TRT World reported the ministry’s statement as: “As a result of the crash of our S-70-type helicopter in Malatya for an as-yet undetermined reason four of our heroic comrades-in-arms on the helicopter were martyred.”

Daily Sabah quoted the ministry as saying: “Four of our fellow soldiers were killed when our S-70 helicopter crashed in Malatya for reasons yet to be determined.”

TV images showed the wreckage of the helicopter burning near a cluster of buildings in an otherwise open area of land. The Demiroren News Agency reported that flames had spread to a nearby house but reported no casualties on the ground. Daily Sabah reported that a fire broke out at the crash site and spread to a nearby house, according to initial reports, and that emergency crews were dispatched to the area and extinguished the flames.

Police, firefighters and medical teams were dispatched to the crash. TRT World said the ministry earlier said the helicopter wreckage had been located and search and rescue operations had immediately begun. Daily Sabah said the Defense Ministry confirmed the crash in a statement, saying the cause remained unknown and search-and-rescue efforts began immediately after teams reached the wreckage.

No further details were immediately available, according to TRT World. Daily Sabah said there was no immediate official information on casualties.

Sources

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