Small plane crashes into Beijing's tallest building
by Lisa Hornung · UPIJune 26 (UPI) -- A small plane crashed into the tallest building in Beijing Friday, social media video and eyewitness reports have shown.
The Chinese government hasn't yet spoken about the crash, and police on the scene have told the public to not take photos, CNN reported.
A CNN correspondent on the scene said the building, Citic Tower, also known as China Zun, was evacuated and debris was falling from the 109-story building. He also saw a taxi with a broken window on the ground.
Online images showed the plane's registration code, revealing that it was likely a domestically manufactured light sport aircraft, a Sunward SA 60L Aurora B12-PP, owned by a local aviation company that offers services like pilot training, personal recreational flights and aerial photography, CNN said.
FL360Aero.com, an aviation news site, posted images and video on X from the scene, showing a plane's tail lying on the sidewalk. The post estimated that it hit around the 65th floor of the building.
Flightradar24 posted on X flight data that appeared to show a deviated flight path for the plane after it took off from Shifosi airport in Beijing's eastern Pinggu district.
"This aircraft is normally used for pilot training east of Beijing," said Ian Petchenik, a spokesperson for FlightRadar, The New York Times reported. He said that this flight was "out of character" with training flights. "I don't think we can rule anything out at this point."
An employee of a nearby gym, who identified himself as Zhang, told The Times that he was walking with friends in the area when he saw a plane hit the tower around 6 p.m. local time. He later saw a woman with a head injury taken away in an ambulance, he said.
Citic Group, which is headquartered in the building, is one of China's largest state-owned financial companies.