China Eastern Airlines plane crash was intentional: Report
In March, a Boeing 737-800 aeroplane flying from Kunming to Guangzhou crashed in the Guangxi highlands following a precipitous drop from cruising altitude, killing all 123 passengers and nine staff members on board. It was the deadliest aircraft tragedy in mainland China in 28 years.
FollowFlight data from a black box recovered from the China Eastern Airlines plane that crashed in March shows that someone in the cockpit purposefully wrecked the plane, citing persons familiar with US investigators' first assessment, as per The Wall Street Journal.
According to Reuters, the focus is on the crew's behaviour after the early inquiry found no evidence of a technical issue. Boeing Co, the plane's manufacturer, declined to comment, referring inquiries to Chinese officials. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) did not respond quickly.
In March, a Boeing 737-800 aeroplane flying from Kunming to Guangzhou crashed in the Guangxi highlands following a precipitous drop from cruising altitude, killing all 123 passengers and nine staff members on board. It was the deadliest aircraft tragedy in mainland China in 28 years.
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China Eastern began usage of the 737-800 planes in mid-April. According to analysts, Chinese regulators did not make any technical suggestions on the 737-800, which has been in service since 1997 and has an excellent safety record, in a summary of its preliminary crash study released last month.
Earlier, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy stated that board investigators and Boeing had come to China to help the Chinese inquiry. She stated that the examination had discovered no safety risks that would necessitate immediate action. If the board has any safety issues, Homendy said it would "make immediate safety recommendations."
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China has had a good air safety record in recent years even though new airlines have taken to the country's skies covering its entire length and breadth. The last such crash was reported in 2010 when a Henan Airlines flight with 92 passengers on board had crashed in northeastern Heilongjiang province. The deadliest Chinese commercial flight crash happened in 1994 when all 160 onboard a China Northwest Airlines went down.Â
