The second black box containing the flight data of the Boeing 737-800 flight MU5735 that crashed in Guangxi on March 21 has been detected.
China Central Television CCTV reported on March 27 that rescuers had found the second black box of China Eastern’s ill-fated flight MU5735. However, it is not clear whether this black box can work or not.
Experts believe that the second black box contains more important data than the cockpit voice recorder (the first black box) found on March 23. The second black box can explain why the plane suddenly dived and plummeted to the ground.
“It contains a lot of visual information such as the plane’s altitude, pilot’s commands, and important system parameters of the plane. These data help the investigation team to sketch the plane crash scenario,” Wang Yanan, chief editor of Beijing-based Aerospace Knowledge magazine, explained.
Hu Zhenjiang, deputy director-general of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), confirmed that all 123 passengers and 9 crew members on flight MU5735 have died. 114 passengers and 6 crew members have been identified through DNA testing.
On each plane, there are two devices, known as black boxes, including the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder. Both are painted in striking orange for easy finding. Both black boxes on the Boeing 737-800 are installed in the back of the plane, where there is less impact from a collision.
The first black box containing the cockpit voice recorder was taken back to Beijing for decoding. However, Zhu Tao, director of the CAAC’s Aviation Safety Committee, said it may have been damaged and could not recover after the collision.
Flight MU5735 crashed in the forest area of Teng County, Wuzhou City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on March 21. FlightRadar24 data shows the plane went down vertically while flying at an altitude of nearly 9,000 meters (29,000 ft). The pilot tried to save the plane, but it still crashed to the ground at nearly 600 km/h (373 mph).
