Plane crashes near Laohekou airport in China, pilot survives with minor injuries

Around Laohekou airport, a plane crashed in the Hubei province of China, leaving houses on fire. The pilot managed to eject and land with the help of a parachute.

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In the Hubei province of central China, a plane crashed in the close vicinity of the Laohekou airport, leaving a slew of houses on fire. The reason behind the crash, however, isn’t reported yet, but the pilot managed to eject himself and land safely via the parachute with just minor injuries. Several videos of the incident, circulating on the internet show a lot of houses on fire at the accident scene because of the plane’s crash landing. While the emergency department personnel rushed to the spot, any details of the casualties of residents are awaited. This is the third aviation incident to be reported in China since March this year.

Last month, a plane of Tibet Airlines aborted takeoff in Chongqing with 122 people on board as it skidded off the runway and caught fire, leaving more than people injured. The aircraft was reported to be a 10-year-old plane, bearing a B-6426 registration code.

"Tibet Airlines flight 9833, an Airbus A319-115, was damaged beyond repair when it was involved in a takeoff accident at Chongqing-Jiangbei International Airport (CKG/ZUCK), China. Preliminary information indicates the aircraft aborted the takeoff and veered off the runway. A post-crash fire ensued, but all occupants were able to exit the aircraft," said Aviation Safety Network on the incident.

Also, on March 12, a Boeing 737 aircraft from Kunming to Guangzhou crashed in Tengxian county of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. All the 132 people on board, including nine crew members, were killed. "The two recorders on the plane were severely damaged due to the impact, and the data restoration and analysis work is still in progress," CAAC said in a statement on finding the black boxes of the crashed plane.

(With inputs from PTI)