Turkey has confirmed the death of all 20 people aboard a military cargo plane that crashed in eastern Georgia on its return from Azerbaijan.

The C-130 Hercules aircraft took off from Ganja Airport in western Azerbaijan on Tuesday but went down shortly after crossing into Georgia, the Turkish Defence Ministry said.

Defence Minister Yasar Guler mourned the victims in a statement on X, describing them as “heroic comrades-in-arms.”

Eyewitness footage published by Azerbaijani media showed the plane spinning midair before impact. Georgian officials said the aircraft disappeared from radar without sending a distress signal and crashed near Sighnaghi, about five kilometres from the Azerbaijani border.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.