NextSharkNextShark.com
Latest Newsletter🍵 Ming-Na Wen honoredRead

Article

Chinese rescue teams struggle to find flight MU-5735’s second black box, which recorded flight data

flightcrash
Image: CNA
  • Since China Eastern Airlines flight 5735 crashed on Monday, rescuers have found no survivors among the 132 people on board.

  • The search party, which recovered the plane’s first black box on Wednesday, is currently looking for the second one to expedite the investigation.

  • The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has sought the help of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the United States’ National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) for the ongoing investigation.

  • The top insurance regulator in China has urged insurance companies to assist families properly with their insurance claims.

Asian America Daily - in under 5 minutes

Get our collection of Asian America's most essential stories, to your inbox daily, for free!

Unsure? Check out our Newsletter Archive

Chinese authorities continue to scour the crash site of the ill-fated China Eastern Airlines flight MU-5735 days after it dropped from the sky and collided into the mountains of the Guangxi region on Monday.

As of this writing, rescue teams have so far failed to find any sign of survivors from the nine crew members and 123 passengers aboard the Boeing 737.

While authorities have yet to publicly release the names of the passengers, China Eastern has reached out to their families in private. Guangxi’s Wuzhou city has prepared over 50 psychologists to provide counseling to the relatives of passengers who went to the crash scene.

On Wednesday, the search party recovered the plane’s first black box, which is believed to contain the cockpit voice recorder. The team is still looking for a second one that purportedly records flight data.

Black boxes contain important information that would help investigators piece together the reason for the crash. The retrieved device has been sent to Beijing, where it will be analyzed by investigators.

Experts said the preliminary analysis alone could take 10 to 15 days, with the final conclusion to be presented in a later report.

Search teams are reportedly having trouble locating the second black box as it could not be recovered at the scene, possibly due to a damaged signal transmitter. Heavy rains have also made the search for missing passengers and plane wreckage extra challenging for rescuers.

According to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), it has submitted details about the investigation to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), as well as the United States’ National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

The agency plans to invite representatives from the two groups to assist once the official investigation into the U.S.-manufactured plane begins.

Flight MU-5735, which came from Kunming city, was en route to Guangzhou on Monday when the plane made a sudden nosedive into the mountainous Guangxi region.

Civil aviation data provider VariFlight said the plane was up at about 8,900 meters (approximately 29,200 feet) when it began to slow down and descend at 2:19 p.m. Shortly after, the plane dropped to 1,300 meters (4,265 feet) and lost radar contact.

According to Chinese authorities, the plane’s onboard pilots reportedly failed to respond to repeated calls from air traffic controllers as it was making its rapid descent.

The country’s regulators have urged insurance companies to ensure families are assisted properly with their insurance claims. Insurers have now launched their own investigations and are even participating in the search and rescue operations.

Families of the victims will receive compensation based on flight insurance that the passengers bought before their plane ride.

China Eastern Airlines notes on its website that in case of a fatal disaster, family members of passengers who paid 30 yuan (approximately $4.71) for travel insurance are entitled to receive 2 million yuan (approx. $314,000) in damages. Those who opted for insurance coverage costing 100 yuan are entitled to more than twice that amount.

Support our Journalism with a Contribution

Many people might not know this, but despite our large and loyal following which we are immensely grateful for, NextShark is still a small bootstrapped startup that runs on no outside funding or loans.

Everything you see today is built on the backs of warriors who have sacrificed opportunities to help give Asians all over the world a bigger voice.

However, we still face many trials and tribulations in our industry, from figuring out the most sustainable business model for independent media companies to facing the current COVID-19 pandemic decimating advertising revenues across the board.

We hope you consider making a contribution so we can continue to provide you with quality content that informs, educates and inspires the Asian community. Even a $1 contribution goes a long way.  Thank you for everyone's support. We love you all and can't appreciate you guys enough.

Support NextShark

Mastercard, Visa, Amex, Discover, Paypal