A China Eastern passenger jet carrying 132 people has crashed in southwest China and caused a mountain fire with casualties unknown, state broadcaster CCTV reported Monday.
The crash involved a Boeing 737 travelling from Kunming to Guangzhou.
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.
CCTV said a “China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737 plane carrying 132 people has crashed in Teng county, Wuzhou, Guangxi, and caused a mountain fire.”
Local media reported that 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.
More clips from the crash site pic.twitter.com/0mY1U9Vi7f
— ChinaAviationReview (@ChinaAvReview) March 21, 2022
According to FlightRadar24 data, the flight tracking ended at 2.22pm (6.22am GMT) at an altitude of 3,225ft with a speed of 376 knots.
The number of casualties is not immediately known and rescue teams are on the way, CCTV said.
Final seconds of #MU5735 pic.twitter.com/gCoMX1iMDL
— ChinaAviationReview (@ChinaAvReview) March 21, 2022
China’s last fatal jet accident was in 2010, when 44 of 96 people were killed when an Ambraer E-190 regional jet flown by Henan Airlines crashed on approach to Yichun airport in low visibility, according to Aviation Safety Network.
