Britain agrees to analyse the black box from a Falcon 50 crash in Turkey that killed a Libyan general and his delegation, Libya’s transport minister says.
TRIPOLI: Britain has agreed to analyse the black box from a plane crash in Turkey that killed a senior Libyan military delegation last month.
Libya’s Transport Minister Mohamed al-Chahoubi confirmed the agreement at a press conference in Tripoli on Thursday.
General Mohammed al-Haddad, the head of the Libyan army, and four aides died when their Falcon 50 jet crashed shortly after takeoff from Ankara on December 23.
Three crew members, two of them French, were also killed in the accident.
Turkish officials have previously stated an electrical failure caused the crash.
The aircraft’s flight recorder was recovered from farmland near the crash site.
“We coordinated directly with Britain for the analysis of the black box,” said Chahoubi, who serves in Libya’s Government of National Unity.
He explained that an initial request for analysis was made to Germany, which sought France’s assistance.
“However, the Chicago Convention stipulates that the country analysing the black box must be neutral,” the minister stated.
“Since France is a manufacturer of the aircraft and the crew was French, it is not qualified to participate.”
Chahoubi said the United Kingdom was accepted as a neutral party by both Libya and Turkey.
Foreign Minister Taher al-Baour said a joint Libyan-Turkish request for British technical support was submitted earlier this week.
Britain announced its agreement following coordination with Libyan and Turkish authorities, according to Chahoubi.
It is not yet known how long the data retrieval process will take, as it depends on the condition of the flight recorder.
“The findings will be made public once they are known,” Chahoubi affirmed.
He warned the public against “false information” and urged people not to pay attention to rumours.
General Haddad was a popular figure in Libya despite the country’s deep political divisions.
He served as chief of staff for the internationally recognised government based in the west.
Libya has been split since the 2011 overthrow of longtime leader Moamer Kadhafi, with military ruler Khalifa Haftar controlling the east.
