Beijing Plane Crash: Light Aircraft Crashes Into 1,732-Foot CITIC Tower, Videos Surface
On Friday evening, June 26, a Sunward SA60L Aurora light sport aircraft deviated from its flight path and struck the upper floors of CITIC Tower, Beijing's tallest building. The impact of shattered glass triggered an immediate evacuation. Emergency responders cordoned off the area under tight security, and an investigation into the cause is ongoing.
A light sport aircraft struck the upper floors of CITIC Tower, Beijing’s tallest building, on Friday, June 26, causing glass damage and forcing the immediate evacuation of the skyscraper. The incident occurred around 6:00 PM local time in the capital's busy central business district. While flight-tracking data indicates the plane significantly deviated from its intended flight path, emergency officials have cordoned off the area and launched an active investigation into the cause.
Impact and Immediate Evacuation
The aircraft, identified through online wreckage images as a domestically manufactured Sunward SA60L Aurora, collided with a high floor of the 109-storry skyscraper, also known as China Zun. Eyewitnesses reported hearing a massive collision that shattered multiple glass panels and sent fragments falling to the base of the 1,732-foot-tall structure. Snake Breeding Bust in China: Man Jailed After High Electricity Usage Exposes Illegal 300-Python Apartment Farm.
Small Plane Crashes Into CITIC Tower in Beijing
"It was so loud – louder than fireworks," a bystander near the building told Reuters, describing the moment of impact. Alarms within the tower prompted hundreds of occupants to flee the premises immediately. “I ran out without my ID card or bag,” an evacuated worker told the South China Morning Post shortly after escaping to the streets below.
Emergency Response and Information Control
A heavy contingent of emergency responders, including police vehicles, fire engines, and ambulances, deployed rapidly to the scene in the Chaoyang District. Police tightly managed the surrounding perimeter, closing off several nearby arterial roads to vehicular traffic. In line with strict local information control measures, security personnel actively stopped members of the public from taking photographs or recording videos of the building. Passersby who had captured early footage of the wreckage were ordered to delete their files as authorities cleared bystanders from the immediate vicinity.
Flight Records and Casualties Under Investigation
Flight-tracking data showed the single-engine, two-seat aircraft travelling near Beijing’s East Fifth Ring Road before it suddenly deviated from its path and vanished from radar screens. Registration logs suggest the plane belonged to a local general aviation firm that provides private pilot training and aerial sightseeing services. As of Friday evening, municipal authorities had not released official figures regarding potential casualties or confirmed how many individuals were on board the light aircraft. The CITIC Tower serves as the prominent corporate headquarters for the state-owned financial conglomerate CITIC Group. Did China Summon India’s Ambassador Over ‘Chinese Caste’ Memes? MEA Fact Check Calls Claim False.
The high-altitude collision occurred against a backdrop of heavily monitored airspace regulations within China. Operating light sport aircraft over the capital is subject to overlapping approvals from both the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and the People's Liberation Army Air Force. Furthermore, Beijing implemented sweeping restrictions on May 1 that prohibit residents from purchasing, renting, or operating unmanned aerial vehicles or drones without stringent prior government authorisation.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 26, 2026 08:31 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).