A Turkish firefighting aircraft belonging to Türkiye’s General Directorate of Forestry has crashed in Croatia, killing the pilot, Turkish Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakl? confirmed on Thursday. The wreckage was located near the city of Senj after radio contact was lost earlier in the evening.
Two AT-802 firefighting planes had departed Türkiye the previous day en route to Zagreb for scheduled maintenance, stopping overnight in Rijeka due to poor weather. On Thursday, both aircraft attempted to continue their journey but were forced to turn back because of worsening weather conditions. While one plane landed safely in Rijeka, contact with the second aircraft was lost at 18:25 Turkish time.
Minister Yumakl? expressed condolences, calling the pilot a martyr and offering prayers for his family.