ISTANBUL, JAN  17 (DNA) –  A Turkish military transport plane on Wednesday crashed in southern Anatolia, claiming the lives of three army personnel on board, the Turkish army said in a statement.

The plane, carrying two pilots and one technician, crashed in the southern Isparta province, the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) said, offering condolences to the families of “our heroic comrades” who were killed “as a result of a tragic accident.”

The cause of the crash was not immediately known but local governor Sehmus Gunaydin told there was dense and thick fog in the region.

“We are working to reach the wreck” of the plane, he said.

The CASA type plane took off from a base in western Anatolian province of Eskisehir at 0803 GMT and communication had been cut around 0950 GMT, and a search and rescue operation begun, the army said.

In December last year, a Turkish fighter jet crashed near an airport in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir but the pilot was able to safely eject from the plane.