Turkey probing reason for deadly F-16 crash on border mission 

ANKARA, Feb 26 (Reuters) - ‌NATO member ​Turkey ​is investigating the still unknown cause of an F-16 fighter jet ‌crash that killed its pilot shortly ⁠after takeoff on a mission toward the Bulgarian ‌border region, the Defence ‌Ministry said on Thursday.

Two F-16s took off simultaneously early on Wednesday from the 9th Main ​Jet Base Command in Balikesir, in northwest Turkey, as part of an ⁠alarm-reaction mission after an unidentified radar track was detected near ​the border with Bulgaria, the ministry said.

Once radio contact and radar tracking ​were lost shortly after departure, ‌search and rescue teams were immediately dispatched and later reached the ⁠wreckage.

"The cause of the incident will be clarified following a detailed examination by the ⁠crash investigation team," the ministry said, adding that the ​pilot had activated the ejection system at the last moment before the crash.

Turkey has around 250 F-16 ‌fighter jets in its inventory and has a pending order with ‌the United States to purchase 40 ⁠new F-16 Block ‌70 aircraft as ​part of a fleet modernisation programme.

(Reporting by Ece Toksabay; Editing by Jonathan ‌Spicer )

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