LONDON – Developing news from the last hour confirms that a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 has crashed in Guangxi Province, China.
MU5735 was on a routine flight from Kunming to Guangzhou when the aircraft dropped between 24,000-31,000 feet per minute into the mountains.

Data from RadarBox.com shows that the flight landed in Guangzhou but Chinese media outlet CGTN has confirmed the downing of the aircraft.
#China Civil Aviation Administration confirmed the crash of a Boeing 737 on Monday. There were 132 people on board, including 123 passengers and nine crew members.
— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) March 21, 2022
"Emergency mechanism has been activated, and a working group has been dispatched to the scene," the statement added pic.twitter.com/1Zq1liIqXD
It is understood that 132 people onboard, translating to 123 passengers and nine crew members.
The Civil Administration of China has released a statement on the downing of the aircraft:
“Emergency mechanism has been activated, and a working group has been dispatched to the scene”.
B-1791 is a 6.8-year-old Boeing 737-89P(WL) that was delivered to China Eastern back in June 2015. The aircraft was cruising at 29,100 feet before making a rapid descent into the mountain.
It is also understood that everyone on board has died.
This is a developing story.
UPDATE #1:
Final moments of MU5735 reportedly shows the 737 in a steep dive before crashing into terrain in Guangxi Zhuang. pic.twitter.com/Jwf0lWdoI9
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) March 21, 2022
Footage has emerged via CCTV of the aircraft in a complete nose-down pitch moments before impact.
UPDATE #2:
It is key to note that MU5735 was not operated by the 737 MAX variant of the family. Boeing has not released a statement as of yet on the downing of the aircraft.
UPDATE #3:
RIP Mu5735 plane crash – 133 people on board #planecrash #mu5735 #boeing pic.twitter.com/03TIp7XCoJ
— Hing Kan (@hingkan88) March 21, 2022
CAAC reported 132 passengers and 9 crew members on board of flight #MU5735 that came down in a sparsely populated area setting off wildfires. If confirmed, this accident represents the worst ever accident of China Eastern Airlines and the 8th worst of a Boeing 737. pic.twitter.com/WSXUxU8se2
— JACDEC (@JacdecNew) March 21, 2022
China Eastern Boeing 737-800 (B-1791, built 2015) crashed south of Wuzhou on flight #MU5735 from Kunming to Guangzhou. As per initial reports, there are no survivors. pic.twitter.com/H5ygKsFkFy
— Malik Ali Raza (@MalikAliiRaza) March 21, 2022
The footage is emerging of the crash site in the mountains of the Guangxi Province, although such footage that we see above has not been confirmed by authorities at this stage.
We are however beginning to see photos of some aircraft parts upon the arrival of rescue teams who are now on the scene.
UPDATE #3:
【#詳訊:東航客機MU5735墜毀廣西,132人下落不明】#東航墜機事故不斷更新:https://t.co/c2FkR62bX1
— 端傳媒 Initium Media (@initiumnews) March 21, 2022
3月21日下午16:09,據央視新聞報道,中國東方航空公司MU5735航班在廣西梧州藤縣掉落,並引發山火。
Initium Media is reporting that this is the first time in nearly 12 years that an air accident has occurred in China.
Initium also reported that the crash of the aircraft has caused a wildfire in Teng Country, Wuzhou.
UPDATE #4:
The Chinese President Xi Jinping has activated the emergency mechanism and has called for the following items in the wake of the accident:
“The State Council has appointed leading comrades to coordinate and deal with the accident, find out the cause of the accident as soon as possible, draw inferences from one case to another, strengthen the investigation of potential safety hazards in the field of civil aviation, pay close attention to the implementation of responsibilities, ensure the absolute safety of aviation operations, and ensure the absolute safety of people’s lives.”
UPDATE #5:
Dash cam footage pic.twitter.com/w8iOzHblXE
— ChinaAviationReview (@ChinaAvReview) March 21, 2022
More footage of the aircraft moments before impact has been revealed from a driver’s dash-cam which is confirming the theory that the aircraft was in a complete nose-down pitch.
UPDATE #6:
The U.S Federal Aviation Administration has commented on the crash saying:
“FAA is aware of reports that a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 plane crashed this morning in China. The agency is ready to assist in investigation efforts if asked.”
UPDATE #7:

China Eastern has released a statement on the crash.
UPDATE #8:
Our thoughts are with the passengers and crew of China Eastern Airlines Flight MU 5735. We are working with our airline customer and are ready to support them.
— The Boeing Company (@Boeing) March 21, 2022
Boeing has released a statement on the incident.