A China Eastern Boeing 737-800 has crashed flying from Kunming (KMG) to Guangzhou (CAN). MU 5735, a domestic flight operated by a 737 with tail number B-1791, had 132 people on board when it appears to have rapidly descended into a mountainous region of China. The Civil Aviation Administration of China has confirmed that the aircraft did indeed crash.

The flight data

FlightRadar24.com appears to have been tracking the aircraft at the time of its crash, with the service picking up the rapid descent of the Boeing 737-800. The flight-tracking service suggests that the aircraft was cruising at 29,100 feet when the event started.

The approximate location of the crash. Photo: FlightRadar24.com

The service took the last reading at 29,100 feet at 06:19:59 UTC. The following reading picked up by the service from the China Eastern plane was at 06:22:16. According to the plane's transponder, the aircraft lost around 20,000 feet of altitude in 77 seconds.

China confirms the crash

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has confirmed that the aircraft has crashed. According to the CAAC, there were 132 people on board the aircraft. This comprised 123 passengers and nine crew members. The administration commented,

"On March 21, 2022, a Boeing 737 of China Eastern Airlines lost contact over Wuzhou during the Kunming-Guangzhou flight... The Civil Aviation Administration has activated the emergency mechanism and dispatched a working group to the scene."

A video circulating on Twitter appears to show a large area of mountainous forest engulfed in flames.

Commenting on the incident a Boeing spokesperson told Simple Flying, "We are aware of the initial media reports and are working to gather more information."

About the aircraft

According to data from ch-aviation.com, the aircraft that is thought to be involved was a 6.8-year-old Boeing 737-800. The aircraft is owned by CES Leasing and operated by China Eastern Airlines. China Eastern ordered the jet on March 22nd, 2012. It first flew on June 5th, 2015, and was delivered less than a month later, on June 22nd. The aircraft has been registered in China since delivery.

The aircraft has a two-class cabin with 150 economy class seats in a 3-3 configuration preceded by 12 business class seats in a 2-2 format. As of December 31st, 2021, the jet has accumulated 17,708 hours (2.02 years) of flight time across 8,734 flight cycles. Its current market value is $25.94 million.

What happens now?

In the immediate aftermath of a crash, first responders will rush to the site of the accident to try and ascertain if there are any survivors and give them the best chance of surviving after an accident. Once any survivors have been removed and any immediate dangers such as fire have been dealt with, the accident investigation will start.

It will be a long wait to find out exactly what happened to flight MU5735, as we will only know the actual cause of this accident once a final report into the occurrence has been issued. Chinese accident investigators will likely already have been dispatched to the site. Typically, other nations with an interest in a crash will also join the investigation. In this case, a team from the NTSB will likely assist as the aircraft involved was a Boeing aircraft.