Migration
US drone crashes in southern Turkey after leaving Incirlik Air Base
Stars and Stripes
August 18, 2017
An MQ-1B Predator remotely piloted aircraft takes off from an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, March 21, 2017. On Thursday, a U.S. Air Force MQ-1 Predator crashed in a field near Adana, Turkey. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
An MQ-1 Predator crashed late Thursday in southern Turkey after taking off from Incirlik Air Base, the military said Friday.
No civilian or military injuries were reported.
The remotely piloted aircraft crashed in a field near Adana about 10:15 p.m., the 39th Air Base Wing at Incirlik said in a statement.
The U.S. military and Turkish officials have control of the aircraft, officials said. The cause of the crash is under investigation.
The U.S. maintains a host of drones and fighter jets at Incirlik, from where airstrike and surveillance operations are routinely launched against Islamic State.
The Predator is used for various missions, including close-air support and surveillance and reconnaissance. It can carry up to two Hellfire missiles.
The Air Force announced earlier this year that it plans to retire the Predator and move to the MQ-9 Reaper because the latter is faster, has high-definition sensors and can carry more munitions.