China Plane Crash: Pilots didn’t answer calls; fast dive

Flightradar24 graphic captures path of China Eastern Flight 5735

Pilots of a doomed China Eastern Airlines Corp. flight failed to respond to calls from air-traffic controllers after tipping into a deadly nosedive, authorities said. The jet was traveling at close to the speed of sound just before it slammed into a hillside, according to a Bloomberg News review of flight-track data.

Investigators have offered no major insights as to why the Boeing Co. 737-800 jet carrying 132 people crashed near Wuzhou in southern China on Monday, saying at a press conference late Tuesday it was too early draw clear conclusions about the cause. All 123 passengers and nine crew are presumed dead.

Rough terrain and the state of the aircraft, which plunged from about 29,000 feet (8,840 meters), make the search difficult. The black boxes from Flight 5735 haven’t been recovered. China Eastern grounded its fleet of 737-800s and thousands of domestic flights were canceled Tuesday across the nation. Chinese officials have ordered a sweeping two-week safety review.

NTSB Names Liaison Investigator

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board named Sathya Silva as its representative for the investigation into the China Eastern crash.

In a statement, the NTSB said it’s in contact with the Civil Aviation Administration of China and will support its probe with technical advisors from the Federal Aviation Administration, Boeing and engine-maker CFM “in all ways necessary.”

According to LinkedIn, Silva is an ex-Boeing safety engineer, a former flight controller at the United Space Alliance, and used to be a researcher for NASA. She has worked at the NTSB for almost six years, her profile shows.

Jet Dived Near Speed of Sound

The jet was traveling at close to the speed of sound in the moments before it slammed into a hillside, according to a Bloomberg News review of flight-track data.

Such an impact may complicate the task for investigators because it can obliterate evidence and, in rare cases, damage a plane’s data and voice recorders that are designed to withstand most crashes. The Boeing 737-800 was knifing through the air at more than 640 miles (966 kilometers) per hour, and at times may have exceeded 700 mph, according to data from Flightradar24, a website that tracks planes.

No Response

Air traffic controllers tried multiple times to reach pilots of doomed China Eastern Flight 5735 after it tipped into a deadly dive on Monday but received no response to their calls, an official with China’s Civil Aviation Administration said at a press briefing.

The plane disappeared from radar screens at 2:23 p.m. local time, three minutes after it started a steep descent, the official, Zhu Tao, said at the end of the first full day of searching through the wreckage. No survivors have been found.

Based on current information, Chinese officials are unable to make clear judgment about the cause of Monday’s crash, Zhu said. The ongoing investigation will be difficult, he said, describing a devastating impact and hilly terrain in the search area.

The so-called black boxes -- separate voice and data recorders which are actually orange in color -- haven’t yet been found, state-backed news agency Xinhua reported. The team will continue to collect evidence toward a full understanding of the cause, Zhu said.

Plane, Pilots Fit

The Boeing jet met airworthiness standards before taking off, and technical conditions were stable, Sun Shiying, a China Eastern official, said at Tuesday night’s briefing, according to the South China Morning Post. The nine crew members were experienced and in good health, he said, according to the newspaper.