Footage of the crash has been shared online – Photo: Twitter
Footage of the crash has been shared online – Photo: Twitter
A tragic aviation incident has been confirmed in China on Monday, with a commercial airliner going off the radar. The plane crash was reported just after 7:00 SAST, after the aircraft failed to complete its scheduled journey.
The China Eastern passenger jet – carrying 133 people – crashed in southwest China and caused a mountain fire with casualties unknown, state broadcaster CCTV reported Monday.
The Boeing 737 plane crashed in the rural countryside near Wuzhou city, Guangxi region and “caused a mountain fire”, CCTV said, citing the provincial emergency management bureau. The report added that rescue teams were dispatched to the scene. According to the news channel:
“China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737 plane carrying 133 people has crashed in Teng county, Wuzhou, Guangxi, and caused a mountain fire. China Eastern flight MU5735 had not arrived at its scheduled destination in Guangzhou after it took off from the city of Kunming shortly after 1:00 pm (0500 GMT) Monday, citing airport staff.”
Footage from near the crash site has been uploaded online. It shows bewildered locals trying to comprehend the scale of the damage they’re witnessing. The fiery wreckage presents an ominous sign for rescue teams, who are desperately seeking survivors up the mountainside.
中国东方航空一波音737客机发生坠机
— bitcoinchina (@bitcoinchina3) March 21, 2022
China Eastern Airlines plane crashes pic.twitter.com/A3OwXAjYb0
【Breaking news】祈祷,希望机上人员都没事???? One plane of CHINA EASTERN dropped in Guang Xi, with 133 passengers on it.#BreakingNews #China #airplanedown pic.twitter.com/mVhviYhp5b
— 0000.stateofus.eth Steven (@0x0000zzx) March 21, 2022
No word has yet been shared on what, exactly, brought this plane down. Investigators will now be tasked with diagnosing what went wrong, and finding the black box now becomes a crucial part of the search operation.
This is a developing story, and we will update this article with more information as and when we receive it.
The last seconds of China Eastern Airlines MU5735 were caught on a CCTV camera. Shows that it was in a near vertical dive. pic.twitter.com/0ZaBcJqLR7
— Oliver Alexander (@OAlexanderDK) March 21, 2022