Ankara, Dec 24 (IANS) The black box and cockpit voice recorder of a private jet that crashed near Turkey’s capital Ankara, killing Libya's army chief and others on board, were recovered on Wednesday from the wreckage of the aircraft, according to Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya.
Addressing reporters, Yerlikaya stated that the wreckage was spread across roughly three square kilometres.
"As a result of the work carried out at the scene by teams from the Transportation Safety Investigation Centre of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, the aircraft’s voice recorder was recovered in the wreckage area at 2.45 am (2345 GMT Tuesday), and the black box was found at 3.20 am (local time)," Turkey's state-run Anadolu News Agency quoted the Minister as saying.
Yerlikaya stated that a 22-member Libyan delegation – including five relatives of the victims, Defence Ministry representatives and officials from the Interior Ministry had arrived in Ankara. "We are also very curious about [the cause of the crash], but this data will reveal the cause, and the authorities will share the findings with you," he said.
Meanwhile, the group of military officials from Libya are reportedly conducting investigations into the wreckage of the private jet.
The private jet carrying the victims crashed on Tuesday after takeoff from Ankara. On Tuesday, Yerlikaya said that the wreckage of the Falcon 50 jet was located by Turkish gendarmerie units near Kesikkavak village in Ankara's Haymana district.
He added that the aircraft had transmitted an emergency landing signal near Haymana, but no further communication could be established afterwards.
Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah confirmed the deaths, saying Army Chief of Staff Mohammed al-Haddad and several senior military officials were killed after the aircraft crashed while returning from an official visit to Turkey. He said the government would investigate "the circumstances of the accident."
The Libyan Government of National Unity has announced three days of national mourning following the death of the senior military officials.
“The Government of National Unity announces official national mourning across Libya for a period of three days, during which flags will be flown at half-mast at all state institutions, and all celebratory and official events will be suspended. This comes in mourning for the souls of the Chief of the General Staff of the Libyan Army, Lieutenant General Mohammed Al-Haddad, and his companions, who lost their lives in a tragic accident while returning from an official mission from the city of Ankara in the Republic of Turkey,” read the statement issued by the Libyan Government.
--IANS
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