Turkish F-16 Fighter Jet Crashes, Pilot Killed

A Turkish F-16 fighter jet crashed shortly after takeoff on Wednesday (25/2) in the early hours of local time. The pilot of the fighter jet was killed in the incident.

According to the Turkish state news agency, Anadolu Agency, on Wednesday (25/2/2026), the Turkish Ministry of Defence stated that radio and aircraft tracking information indicated that the jet, which took off from Balikesir at 00:56 local time, was lost shortly after takeoff.

A search and rescue operation was launched, and the wreckage of the aircraft has been found.

“Our pilot has been martyred. The cause of the accident will be determined after an investigation by the accident investigation team,” said the Turkish Ministry of Defence, expressing condolences to the pilot’s family.

Earlier in November last year, Turkish authorities suspended flights of C-130 cargo planes after one of them crashed in neighbouring Georgia while returning from Azerbaijan. A total of 20 people on board were killed.

Other F-16 fighter jets, manufactured by the US company Lockheed Martin, have crashed in recent months.

In Poland, an F-16 aircraft crashed in August last year during a training exercise for an air show, killing the pilot.

Watch also the video “The Moments of an Indian Fighter Jet Crashing During an Airshow in Dubai”

(ita/ita)