Martyr Pilot's Wife Shares Heartbreaking Farewell: How Could I Know He Would Die in This Plane?

HUMAN INTEREST / ANKARA, TURKEY — DEC 16, 2025

Defne Kandemir, the wife of Air Pilot First Lieutenant Cüneyt Kandemir, who was among the 20 soldiers martyred in a Turkish military plane crash near the Azerbaijan-Georgia border, has shared a heart-wrenching tribute. She posted a video recorded inside the exact aircraft before the tragedy, asking, "How could I have known my husband would be martyred in this plane?"

On November 11, a C-130E transport aircraft (tail number 68-1609) belonging to the 12th Air Transport Main Base Command of the Turkish Air Force crashed while returning to Turkey from Azerbaijan. Following the tragic loss of 20 personnel, Defne Kandemir’s social media post has deeply moved the public.

"We Walked to This Plane Together"

Kandemir shared photos and a video taken previously with her husband inside the specific aircraft involved in the crash. Noting that she had examined the plane in detail during that visit, she wrote:

"Plane number 609. We walked to this plane together. It was the first time I examined the inside and outside of a C-130 so closely. I realized I had taken such a video only when I saw that it was the same plane in the footage. How could I have known that my husband would be martyred in this plane?"

A Farewell with Their Wedding Song

The emotional tribute was accompanied by the song 'Sen Olmasan Ben Solarım Gül Beyaz Gül' (If You Were Not Here, I Would Fade, White Rose), which Kandemir revealed was the song played during their second dance at their wedding.

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"It is even more meaningful now," she wrote. "Our love is infinite; it draws infinity even as the plane falls. The day I was born, the day I met you, the day I married you... 8 and infinity, my only one, Cüneyt Kandemir."

The post received thousands of interactions within hours, with users flooding the comments with messages of condolence and patience for the grieving family.

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