China: Plane crash mystery deepens as evidence suggests midair breakup
What's the story
One component of the Boeing 737-800 that crashed in China on Monday seems to have broken loose prior to the crash, adding to the mystery surrounding the aircraft's fatal dive, Bloomberg News has reported. The suspected piece of the China Eastern Airlines-owned jet was discovered about 10 kilometers from the crash site, Chinese officials said at a press conference on Thursday.
Context
Why does this story matter?
If investigators confirm the component in question broke loose from the plane, it will mean the aircraft broke up in mid-flight, which could provide clues about what caused Monday's crash or at least shed light on the flight's final moments. The Boeing 737 aircraft belonging to China Eastern Airlines, a passenger flight with 132 people on board, crashed in southern China on Monday.
Plane crash
Investigators, safety experts left baffled by 'highly unusual dive'
China's Civil Aviation Administration said flight MU5735 from Kunming to Guangzhou crashed without an emergency radio call from the pilots, hitting a forested hillside about 161km (100 miles) from its destination. Crash investigators and safety experts are perplexed by its highly unusual dive. Aircraft like the Boeing 737-800 aren't designed to dive so aggressively until there is some gross mechanical failure or pilot action.
Discovered piece
Description of the discovered component
Zheng Xi, head of the Guangxi fire-fighting rescue team, said at Thursday's press conference a piece about 4.3 feet long and four inches wide—believed to be from the plane—was discovered on farmland. "In my view, that's the aircraft shedding parts as it's coming down," he said. If that's the case, it may provide clues about the aircraft's speed and pilot maneuvers before the crash.
Boeing 737
Jet was flying much faster than normal speed
The plane did not, however, completely disintegrate. According to data collected by the Flightradar24 tracking service, the aircraft continued to transmit its position until it dived to 3,225 feet, indicating the main structure remained intact. A review of Flightradar24 data by Bloomberg News further revealed that the jet was flying much faster than normal speed during the dive, possibly touching the speed of sound.
SilkAir
Chinese incident similar to 1997 Indonesian plane crash
When a plane—that is not built for such high speeds—goes so fast, it could cause lightweight parts on wings and tail sections to break loose, as per the 1997 Indonesian investigation into the crash of a SilkAir-737-300. According to that investigation, there was insufficient evidence to determine what caused the crash, but it appeared the captain did it on purpose in a murder-suicide case.