Jet Carrying Libya’s Top General Loses Contact Near Ankara

A Falcon 50 business jet carrying five people, including Libya’s Chief of General Staff, Gen. Muhammad Ali Ahmed al-Haddad, lost all radio contact late Tuesday after issuing an emergency landing alert near the Haymana district south of Ankara, officials announced.

The aircraft, tail number 9H-DFJ, departed Ankara Esenboğa Airport at 8:10 p.m. for Tripoli but stopped communicating with air traffic control at 8:52 p.m., according to Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, The Caspian Post reports, citing Turkish media.

He said the jet had transmitted an emergency landing notification in the Haymana area before all contact ceased.

Yerlikaya also confirmed that an investigation is underway and that search efforts were being coordinated after reports of a loud noise heard near Haymana around the time of the incident.

The jet was carrying five passengers, including senior Libyan military chief al-Haddad, when the signal was lost. Flights were temporarily diverted from Ankara Airport as emergency protocols were activated.

Al-Haddad held high-level talks in Ankara on Tuesday as the official guest of Türkiye’s Chief of General Staff Gen. Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu.

Gen. Bayraktaroğlu welcomed his Libyan counterpart with a military ceremony before the two commanders proceeded to bilateral discussions. The meeting focused on defense cooperation and regional security, according to officials familiar with the talks.

Delegation-level meetings were also held, with Turkish Land Forces Commander Gen. Metin Tokel and Libyan Land Forces Commander Lt. Gen. Futuri Gribel joining the discussions.

The Turkish Parliament approved a motion on Monday, extending the troop mandate in Libya for another two years.

Officials said search and rescue teams were dispatched to the region, and further details will be shared as the investigation progresses.