An MQ-1 Predator operating out of Incirlik Air Base crashed in southeast Turkey Monday morning, the base said on its website.

In a short statement, the 39th Air Base Wing at Incirlik said the remotely piloted aircraft crashed at about 11:50 a.m. local time, and that the Air Force is investigating what caused the accident. 

In a follow-up email, U.S. Air Forces Europe-Air Force Africa spokesman Gabriel Myers said the Predator went down in a field about 200 miles east of Adana, and no injuries or deaths have been reported. The Predator was assigned to Creech Air Force Base in Nevada. 

The crash is the second Predator mishap in Turkey in less than a week. On the evening of Aug. 17, a Predator crashed in a field near Adana, Turkey, after departing Incirlik. The 39th said no one was injured in that accident and that it, too, is under investigation.

Myers said there are now no plans to stand down Predator operations at Incirlik in the wake of the two crashes.

Incirlik is in south central Turkey, near the Syrian border, and is a key base for the air war against the Islamic State. Predators provide close-air support and surveillance and reconnaissance, and can carry two Hellfire missiles.

Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.

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