A Turkish Army UH-1 Helicopter Crashed During Training Operations, Killing Six
On December 9, a Bell UH-1H Iroquois helicopter of the Turkish Land Forces crashed during routine training operations near Isparta Army Aviation School after coming into contact with another helicopter of an undisclosed model. Emergency response teams quickly began search and rescue operations after receiving the accident report and promptly located the wreckage. However, no one from the six-man crew, including a brigadier general, could be rescued. The second helicopter managed to land safely about 400 meters away from the crash site.
The Ministry of National Defense stated that expert teams are still investigating the conditions that caused the two helicopters to collide in the air. Once their investigations are complete, they will clarify the details of the incident.
Similar UH-1 military helicopter crashes have occurred in Turkey in the past. The first accident was recorded on November 8, 2002, at Bandırma 6th Main Jet Base. Following this, accidents occurred on March 16, 2006, April 10, 2006, January 10, 2011, November 26, 2018, and February 12, 2019. A total of 22 soldiers lost their lives in these six accidents.
Experts state that one of the main reasons for these accidents is that the UH-1 helicopters reached the end of their service life many years ago. UH-1s made their first flight on October 22, 1956, and production ended in 1976. Turkey, on the other hand, added these helicopters to its inventory in the early 1970s and currently operates more than fifty rotary-wing vehicles of this model.
Turkey is currently phasing out its older UH-1 helicopters and replacing them with more modern platforms through two significant projects led by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI). The first project is the TAI T-70 Utility Helicopter, based on Sikorsky’s S-70i helicopter design. TAI delivered the first series-production T-70 helicopter to the Gendarmerie General Command on December 13, 2022. TAI plans to provide more than 100 helicopters to six different users over the next decade.
The second project focuses on the twin-engine TAI T625 Gökbey General-Purpose Helicopter. TAI delivered the first Gökbey helicopter to the Gendarmerie General Command on October 29, 2024. By 2026, TAI will provide two Gökbeys to the Gendarmerie General Command, seven to the Land Forces Command, four to the Air Forces Command, and three to the General Directorate of Security and the Coast Guard Command.