Massive electrical blackouts across Turkey, flights diverted

ANKARA, Turkey, March 31 (UPI) -- Power outages across Turkey have blacked out much of the country, affecting transport and air traffic control.

Subways, trams, homes and offices are currently without electricity in Istanbul, the country's largest city. Ankara, the country's capital, has also been affected.

More than a dozen cities have lost power.

A glitch in the country's electricity power transmission network led to the blackout, according to officials. Turkish Energy Minister, Taner Yildiz, said a cyber attack has not been ruled out -- stating that all possibilities are being investigated.

"Our main target right now is to restore the network. This is not an incident that we see frequently," Yildiz said on Turkish television while on a trip to Slovakia. "Whether or not terrorism is a high possibility or a low one I cannot say at this stage. I cannot say either whether it is a cyber-attack."

More than 40 of Turkey's 81 provinces have been affected, according to the NTV broadcaster.

Air traffic control chaos due to the blackouts have caused flights to divert.

A widespread power outage in Turkey is affecting flights. 11 of 16 FR24 receivers are down. http://t.co/F84acygyGx pic.twitter.com/O1TgT1qjI5

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— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) March 31, 2015