Fire Fighting Aircraft Submerged in Water Due to Technical Failure

A firefighting plane battling a forest fire in Didim, Aydın, submerged its nose into the water while collecting water from Lake Bafa. Muğla Governor İdris Akbıyık stated in an interview with TRT Haber that the three individuals on board were rescued by the teams.

A firefighting plane belonging to the Turkish Aeronautical Association (THK), intervening in the ongoing forest fires in Muğla from the air, made a hard landing on Lake Bafa while taking on water. Numerous AFAD (Disaster and Emergency Management Authority) and UMKE (National Medical Rescue Team) teams were dispatched to the area to rescue the pilot and other personnel stranded on the plane.

3 People Rescued

Speaking to TRT Haber, Muğla Governor İdris Akbıyık said, “We can say that the plane sank rather than crashed into Lake Bafa due to a technical malfunction. There were three people on the plane, including two pilots and one official. They were rescued with the help of our gendarmerie and civilian citizens.”

Statement from Minister Yumaklı

Minister of Agriculture and Forestry İbrahim Yumaklı made a statement on his social media account regarding the plane that had an accident on Lake Bafa. Yumaklı said, “The CL-215 type firefighting plane, used by the General Directorate of Forestry and operated by THK, encountered an accident in Lake Bafa for an unknown reason while combating a forest fire in Didim, Aydın. The three crew members on the plane were rescued safely. I extend my best wishes to our dedicated crew and thank all the institutions and personnel supporting the fight against forest fires.”

Statement from the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure announced that an Air Force reconnaissance plane continues its activities over the lake. The ministry stated, “At 16:27 today, our Rescue Coordination Center received a distress signal from the TC-TVK tail-numbered firefighting plane of the Turkish Aeronautical Association. It was found that the plane had fallen into Lake Bafa while intervening in a forest fire in Aydın. A SAR operation was immediately initiated, and air elements from the Air Force and Coast Guard Command were dispatched from İzmir and Dalaman. It was determined that the plane made a hard nose landing into the lake, there were three crew members on board, and their health conditions are good. An Air Force reconnaissance plane continues its activities over the lake.”

“They Have No Issues, Their Condition is Good”

Governor Akbıyık, speaking to reporters outside the hospital, said, “Today, in addition to Muğla, there was a forest fire in the Didim district of Aydın. A plane from the Turkish Aeronautical Association came to Lake Bafa to collect water, but for an unknown reason, it sank while taking on water, and two pilots and one personnel were rescued with the help of citizens and teams. They are currently at Milas State Hospital and have no issues. Their condition is good.”

Akbıyık noted that forest fires broke out in the Menteşe and Milas districts of Muğla today and have been extinguished. He mentioned that teams intervened in the Milas district fire both from the air and on the ground within 10 minutes and evacuated 14 households. The intervention involved 10 aerial vehicles, 64 fire trucks, and 184 workers, with 48 hectares of agricultural land and forest affected.

Recounting the Rescue

Yalçın Kocakaya, one of those who rescued the crew with his boat, recounted the moment. Kocakaya, who runs a facility by the lake, said, “As soon as I saw the plane crash, I went to the scene with my son and brother using our tour boat. These are people fighting so that our forests do not burn. We must also fight for their lives. Knowing the water, we did our best to get them out. Thank God there were no fatalities. Hopefully, this won’t happen again.”

The rescue was recorded on a mobile phone, showing Kocakaya and his companions approaching the plane on the water, Kocakaya jumping into the water to tie the boat to the plane with a rope, taking the crew on board, and later bringing them to shore to hand them over to AFAD and UMKE teams.

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