The airline China Eastern has confirmed it is grounding all of its Boeing 737-800 jets following the crash of one of its aircraft today, killing all 132 people on board.
According to initial reports, flight MU5735 had been flying at 523mph / 455 knots at approximately 30,000 at around 14:19 when it suddenly dropped in altitude at an alarmingly fast rate before data transmitted by the plane ended just over two minutes later.
We are following reports that China Eastern Airlines flight #MU5735 has crashed.
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) March 21, 2022
Last ADS-B data from the aircraft was received at 06:22 UTC and was indicating a vertical speed of -31.000 feet per minute.https://t.co/Lwo8klGf8g pic.twitter.com/wJXpHuDswx
Shares in Boeing fell 4.5% after the news broke that another of its 737 jets had crashed, some of its suppliers also saw the value of their shares falling. France-listed Safran fell 3%, Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc, Hexcel Corp and Triumph Group were all down between 1% and 4%.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said he was 'shocked' by the crash and ordered an “all-out effort” for the rescue operation, he also stated that a full investigation into the crash and to ensure complete civil aviation safety would report as soon as possible.
Unconfirmed and unverified videos have appeared on social media indicating the aircraft may have dropped vertically with parts of the wings breaking off and falling far from the crash site.
