A single-engine, two-seat light sport plane flew into the side of the CITIC Tower, Beijing's tallest building, which rises more than 1,700 feet (528 meters) just east of the East Third Ring Road. [1]
Chinese authorities confirmed it. A short WeChat statement from the Chaoyang district government said a "single-engine double-seat light sports aircraft collided with a high-rise building in flight" on Friday at 5:55 p.m., killing the pilot and injuring 13 others. [2]
Here's where the viral version gets it wrong. Posts circulating outside China's firewall framed it as a crash where "one survived" and "the pilot was not the one who survived." The official account is the opposite and simpler: the pilot was the only person on the craft, and the pilot is the one who died. The 13 injured were people in the building and on the ground, not passengers. [2]
The damage was also smaller than a 528-meter collision sounds. The impact knocked out two large glass panels, leaving a hole on the facade that was temporarily covered over. Aviation trackers estimated the plane struck around the 65th floor. [2] (Sources can't even agree on the building's height: the AP calls it 108 stories, UPI 109.)
So how does a plane reach a skyscraper in one of the most tightly controlled airspaces on earth, a city where even drones are mostly banned? That's the part nobody has answered. The aircraft, a Sunward SA 60L Aurora operated by a general aviation firm, took off from Shifosi airport in Beijing's eastern Pinggu district, roughly 50 kilometers away, and Flightradar24 data showed it deviating from its expected path before ending just east of the ring road. [1] It is not known whether the crash was intentional. [2]
The information lockdown was immediate. Posts, video and images were scrubbed from China's internet on Friday, a Caixin report on the casualties became inaccessible, and state media, whose headquarters sits across the street from the tower, said nothing. [1]
An investigation is underway. The cause, and how the pilot got past the controls, remain unconfirmed.
Sources
Primary source: Tweet by @aviationbrk
- Tweet by @nexta_tv — @nexta_tv · community
- Tweet by @ImtiazMadmood — @ImtiazMadmood · community
- Pilot killed, 13 injured when small plane crashes into Beijing’s tallest building — reporting
- Authorities acknowledge Beijing plane crash; pilot dead, 13 hurt - UPI.com — reporting