A Boeing-737 with 132 people on board crashed in southern China on Monday. This accident could prove to be the deadliest since 1994 in this country where aviation safety has greatly improved.
The aircraft “lost contact over the city of Wuzhou” in the mountainous region of Guangxi, the Chinese Civil Aircraft Administration (CAAC) said without providing a casualty toll.
“It is confirmed that this flight crashed,” she added in a brief statement, adding that she had dispatched “a task force” to the scene. The aircraft was carrying 123 passengers and 9 crew members.
Chinese President Xi Jinping “in shock”
Chinese President Xi Jinping said he was “in shock” after the crash, state broadcaster CCTV reported. In an unusual hot reaction, the strong man from Beijing called for “determining the causes of the accident as soon as possible”, indicated the chain.
According to local media, China Eastern Airlines flight MU5735 took off shortly after 1:00 p.m. local time from the southwest metropolis of Kunming. His destination was Canton (south), some 1,300 km away. No comment was immediately available from China Eastern, which has put its black-and-white website on the heels.
The plane “completely fell to pieces” after crashing into a mountainside, a local resident told local media. ^ The accident “caused a fire” in the mountain, for its part indicated the public television CCTV, adding that rescue teams had been sent to the scene.
According to the specialized site FlightRadar24, the device lost in the space of 3 minutes nearly 26,000 feet (7925 m) before disappearing from the radar screens after 2:22 p.m. local time.
Boeing plunges on the stock market
This accident caused the fall of the shares of Boeing. By mid-morning, they had lost 5.6% to 182.06 dollars. The stock was the Dow Jones’ biggest loser.
The decline in Boeing shares also reflected fears that the MAX delivery schedule could be delayed as Chinese authorities investigate Monday’s crash.
Boeing’s deliveries to airlines count heavily in the company’s revenue profile, analysts noted. A delay in Chinese deliveries could also affect Boeing’s plans to ramp up manufacturing of the MAX.
The aircraft manufacturer did not respond directly to questions from AFP about how the disaster could affect MAX deliveries.
Relatively rare plane crashes
Plane accidents are relatively rare in China, a country where air traffic has grown considerably in recent decades and safety measures are generally strict.
The last major accident in the country dates back to August 2010. A flight from the Chinese company Henan Airlines then crashed in the northeast of the country and killed around 40 people.
The heaviest toll for a commercial flight dates back to 1994. A China Northwest Airlines Tupolev 154 crashed shortly after takeoff from Xi’an (north), killing all 160 people on board.
Many Chinese passengers also perished in March 2014 during the enigmatic disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, bound for Beijing.
New blow
Monday’s air disaster is another blow for Boeing in China. In March 2019, the country was the very first in the world to order its companies to suspend flights of 737 MAX aircraft for security reasons.
The announcement followed two accidents in a few months abroad, which had killed 346 people.
Nearly three years after these setbacks, the Chinese regulator finally lifted its flight ban for the Boeing 737 MAX last December. It is not yet known whether these aircraft have resumed commercial flights in China again. This decision was eagerly awaited by Boeing, of which China is an important market.
The regulator notably conditioned the return of the 737 MAX in Chinese skies to technical modifications to the planes, in order to guarantee flight safety. China was the last major country to lift the ban on the aircraft.
This article has been published automatically. Sources: ats / blg / afp