Greek Foreign Ministry spokesman Konstantinos Koutras responding to a question of a reporter on the searches conducted in the south sea area of Chios said that “Turkish authorities have notified the Greek Foreign Ministry for the searches in international waters off the island for the dead body of one of the jet’s pilots crashed in 1996”.

He also stated that Greece is ready to contribute to the efforts, if necessary.

The incident occurred after the Turkish jet fighter was intercepted by a pair of Greek Mirage over the Aegean Sea in 1996. The Turkish government accepted that the cause was a mechanical damage. One pilot, Osman Cicekli, survived the crash while the second one, Nail Erdogan, was never found.

The searches are scheduled to be conducted from April 13 to April 21.