A passenger plane flying from Istanbul to Mineralnye Vody has returned to Istanbul due to a suspected technical malfunction on board.

Axar.az reports, citing Russian media, that the aircraft turned back shortly after takeoff. Air traffic sources did not specify the nature of the suspected problem.

According to online flight tracking data, the aircraft declared an emergency after departure.

Flightradar24 data showed that the plane took off from Istanbul Airport, climbed to an altitude of nearly 10,000 meters over the Black Sea, then began descending, turned back toward Istanbul, and issued an emergency signal.