Generator Failures Causes Electrical Loss Before Libya’s Plane Crash

(MENAFN) Turkish authorities have released new details regarding the Libyan military plane crash near Ankara on December 23, which killed all eight people on board, including Libya’s chief of general staff, several senior military officials, and three crew members.

Electrical failures reported by the crew
Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu told Anadolu that the aircraft experienced electrical malfunctions, prompting the pilots to report the issue to air traffic control and attempt a return to Esenboga Airport. The crew issued a “PAN-PAN, PAN-PAN, PAN-PAN” call, one level below the highest aviation distress signal, signaling an urgent situation.

Controllers worked to guide the aircraft back manually as onboard systems progressively failed. While the pilots did not verbally declare a MAYDAY, they activated the aircraft’s emergency transponder, which was detected by air traffic controllers.
Crash before safe landing

“All takeoffs and landings at Esenboga Airport were halted once the aircraft began its return,” Uraloglu said. Despite controller guidance, the plane crashed in the Haymana area before it could descend to a safe altitude for landing.
Flight recorders damaged

The minister added that the aircraft’s cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder were heavily damaged, complicating the investigation into the final moments of the flight.
The incident has prompted ongoing inquiries into aircraft maintenance, generator failures, and safety protocols for foreign military flights operating in Turkish airspace.

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