What happened
During a return flight to Adana-Incirlik Airbase following the completion of a logistics mission, the crew was performing a descent. While the aircraft was at an altitude of 5,000 feet, air traffic control authorized the crew to descend further to 3,000 feet. During this phase of the flight, a sudden explosion occurred within the left wing of the aircraft.
Following the blast, the plane became uncontrollable and struck a hill situated approximately 25 km from the airbase. The impact caused the aircraft to burst into flames upon hitting the terrain. There were 18 fatalities among the occupants of the aircraft.
Findings
Preliminary investigations suggest that the primary cause of the accident was an explosion within a fuel tank located in the left wing of the aircraft.