Plane carrying 132 crashes in China, Xi Jinping orders probe

A China Eastern passenger jet carrying 132 people crashed onto a mountain in southern China on Monday causing a large fire, shortly after losing contact with air traffic control and dropping thousands of metres in under three minutes.

There was no immediate confirmation of the number of casualties, but the disaster prompted an unusually swift public reaction from President Xi Jinping, who said he was “shocked” and ordered an immediate investigation into its cause.

The Boeing 737-800 flight from the city of Kunming to the southern hub of Guangzhou “lost airborne contact over Wuzhou” in the Guangxi region on Monday afternoon, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

“This flight has crashed,” the CAAC said, adding the jet was carrying 123 passengers and nine crew members.

Hundreds of firefighters were dispatched to the scene in Teng county near the city of Wuzhou, state media reported, as nearby villagers