As of: 03/26/2022 5:44 p.m
It is sad certainty: According to the authorities, all 132 people on board died in the plane crash on Monday in China. 120 people have now been identified. The cause of the accident is still unclear.
According to the authorities, all 132 people on board died in the plane crash in China in the Guizhou region on Monday. There are 123 passengers and nine crew members, said civil aviation authority (CAAC) vice chief Hu Zhenjiang, according to state media.
120 bodies identified
Forensic scientists have now identified 120 bodies. According to the chief of the fire department in southern China’s Guangxi region, 114 passengers and six crew members were precisely assigned and thus identified in a DNA comparison of remains.
Rescue operations at the crash site are progressing slowly. Workers in knee-high rubber boots worked with shovels and other tools in a 20-meter-deep ditch that the Boeing 737-800 had torn in the ground when it crashed. Pumps sucked up rainwater. Debris was collected in plastic containers. Excavators were also used.
The cause of the crash is so far unclear. According to the authorities, the flight data recorder has not yet been found. The device for voice recording from the cockpit, on the other hand, was recovered on Wednesday and sent to Beijing for examination. According to authorities, no evidence of explosives was found in the rubble.
Investigators hope for more insights through data analysis
Investigators should now evaluate the data to find out why the machine went into a nosedive from more than 8,000 meters and fell almost vertically to the ground. Experts described the crash as unusual.
The China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 crashed into a mountainous, forested area on Monday. The plane was en route from Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, to Guangzhou near Hong Kong when it rapidly lost altitude and crashed about an hour after takeoff. The plane crashed practically vertically and caught fire. The remains of the plane and its cargo were widely scattered.
The weather along the flight route did not pose any danger, the aviation authority CAAC had announced. Communication between air traffic controllers and pilots was lost during the descent. According to the authorities, several attempts had been made to contact the machine. But the crew did not respond. About three minutes after the start of the dive, the machine’s signal disappeared.
With information from Eva Lamby-Schmitt, ARD Studio Shanghai
South China: 120 dead identified after plane crash
Eva Lamby-Schmitt, ARD Shanghai, March 26, 2022 at 4:59 p.m