Information extracted from the plane’s damaged flight data recorder shows human input commands to the controls that sent the plane into its deadly dive, according to the Journal, citing people familiar with the probe.
“The plane did what it was supposed to do by someone in the cockpit,” the Journal quoted a person familiar with as US officials’ preliminary assessment of.
The plane’s flight data recorder and cockpit sound recorder were recovered from the crash and sent to the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in Washington DC for analysis, previously Chinese state media.
US officials involved in the investigation are focusing on a pilot’s actions, the Journal reported, adding that it’s also possible that someone else on the plane broke into the cockpit and intentionally caused the crash.
Chinese investigators have identified no mechanical or technical issues with the aircraft that could have caused the crash and may require further industry action — as is typical of such events — a fact that US officials say lends credibility to their assessment, the magazine reported.
DailyExpertNews has contacted the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and China Eastern Airlines for comment.
In a statement to the Journal, China Eastern said no evidence was found that could determine whether or not there were problems with the plane involved in the accident. The airline told the Journal that the pilots’ health and family conditions were good, adding that their financial status was also good.
“Any unofficial speculation could disrupt accident investigation and affect the real progress of the global air transport industry,” the airline told the Journal.
According to the Global Times, the CAAC said the investigation is proceeding in a “scientific and rigorous” manner and promised to release “timely and accurate” updates.
In a summary of the preliminary report released on April 20, the CAAC said the two black boxes were “seriously damaged” and that “recovery and data analysis is still ongoing.”
The report said flight crew and maintenance personnel “met the relevant standards” and that there were no items on board that had been declared as dangerous goods, nor were there any predictions of dangerous weather.
Before the aircraft deviated from cruising altitude, radio communication between the crew and air traffic control showed no abnormalities, according to the report.
Rumors of a copilot deliberately crashing the plane circulated on the internet in China in early April, with some pointing to the CAAC’s comments about the mental health of airline personnel after the crash.
“In particular, officials should do their best in pilots’ ideological work to lay a solid foundation for the front line to operate safely,” Feng said.
Speculation about a pilot’s suicide that caused the crash has previously prompted the CAAC to issue a denial. “These rumors… have seriously misled the public and disrupted the investigation into the accident,” Wu Shijie, a CAAC official, told a news conference on April 11, adding that police were conducting investigations to hold the rumor makers responsible. hold.
