China Eastern Airline plane crash: Experts baffled by aircraft’s steep dive

A day after the China Eastern Airline plane crashed, killing all the people on board, the investigation is still underway. According to the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the jet operated by China Eastern Airlines Corp. went down in mountainous terrain near the city of Wuzhou and parts of the wreckage have been found. The flight’s steep dive has baffled air-crash specialists, reported Bloomberg. 

The China Eastern Airline plane (Boeing Co. 737-800 NG) that crashed in the country’s Guangxi province on Monday was carrying 132 people – 123 passengers and nine crew members. While on a flight from Kunming to Guangzhou, the plane went down over mountains in southern China, causing a forest fire. The aircraft was flying at a distance of around 1,340 km. 

Officials reported that the flight departed the southwestern city of Kunming at 1.11 pm. It was due to land in Guangzhou, on China’s south coast, at 3:05 pm, however, the radar showed the aircraft making a steep descent and contact was lost over Wuzhou city. Its last tracked altitude was 3,225 feet, some 20 seconds after that steep descent, and the tracking stopped at 2:22 pm. 

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The plane was six years old, and had been cruising at an altitude 29,100 feet at 0620 GMT. Just over two minutes and 15 seconds later, data showed it had descended to 9,075 feet, reported Reuters.

The China Eastern airlines has grounded all its Boeing 737-800 jets, after which, its shares in the airline fell on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Boeing has also offered technical support in the investigation over the cause of the crash. 

After the crash, the website of China Eastern Airlines, mobile app and some of its other social media platforms were presented in black and white – what airlines do as a sign of respect or mourning for the assumed victims.

(With bloomberg inputs)