A Boeing-737 of China Eastern Airlines with 132 people on board crashed Monday in southwest China, the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration said, without providing an immediate report.
According to local media, China Eastern Airlines flight MU5735 took off shortly after 1 p.m. local time (5 a.m. GMT) from the southwest metropolis of Kunming. His destination was Canton (South), some 1,300 km away.
The aircraft “lost contact over the city of Wuzhou” in the mountainous region of Guangxi, the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC) said.
“It is confirmed that this flight crashed,” she added in a brief statement, adding that she had dispatched “a task force” to the scene.
The plane was carrying 123 passengers and 9 crew members, according to the CAAC.
The accident “caused a fire” in a mountain, for its part indicated the public television CCTV, adding that rescue teams had been sent to the scene.
No comment was immediately available from China Eastern.
Plane accidents are relatively rare in China, a country where air traffic has grown considerably in recent decades and safety measures generally strict.
The last major accident in the country dates back to August 2010 and killed nearly 50 people.