Military Helicopter Carrying Turkish ASELSAN Specialists Crashes in Qatar, Fatalities Reported

A Qatari Air Force helicopter crashed during a training flight.

The Qatari Ministry of Defense reported on this.

The incident occurred overnight on March 22 during a flight conducted as part of the activities of the Qatar-Turkey Joint Combined Forces Command.

According to preliminary data from the defense ministries of both countries, the helicopter crashed into the sea due to a technical malfunction. There were seven people on board.

Rescue services have confirmed the deaths of six crew members and passengers, while the search for another Qatari Air Force officer is ongoing.

The dead include four Qatari military personnel, one Turkish officer — Major Sinan Tastekin — as well as two civilian employees of the Turkish defense company ASELSAN, Suleyman Cemal Kahraman and Ismail Anas Can.

The presence of ASELSAN specialists on board may indicate testing or servicing of electronic or communications systems that the company supplies to Qatari aviation.

The Turkish Ministry of National Defense stated that military cooperation between the two countries would continue as usual despite the incident.

An official investigation into the cause of the crash will be conducted by the Qatari side with the assistance of Turkish specialists.

The type of helicopter involved has not been officially disclosed. However, Qatar’s air fleet includes a range of Western models, including the NH90 and AH-64E Apache, some equipped with Turkish components.

Miltarnyi previously reported that in India, a Tejas light fighter crashed during landing after a training flight in early February 2026.

The incident occurred at an Indian Air Force base. The pilot ejected safely and was not seriously injured. Due to significant damage, the aircraft is likely to be written off. The Air Force has launched an investigation and broader checks of the Tejas fleet.