A Chinese military jet crashed in a residential area near the airport in Laohekou, Hubei province on Thursday morning killing one person and injuring two.
A People's Liberation Army Air Force J-7 jet was on a training mission in Hubei when the tragedy happened.
Before the fighter jet crashed, the pilot successfully ejected and parachuted to the ground. South China Morning Post reported that the pilot and two civilians were transported to a hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.
The crash occurred near Laohekou airport in Xiangyang, Hubei province, and videos circulating on social media show some homes on fire, which are believed to have been caused by the crash, per CNN.
According to state media, the cause of the crash and associated death is under investigation, and an emergency operation is ongoing.
China's 3rd Plane Accident in 2022
The crash on Thursday is the third accident involving planes in China this year.
Last month, over 40 people were injured when a passenger plane of China's Tibet Airlines with 122 people on board veered off the runway and caught fire while taking off in the country's southwest Chongqing city.
An Airbus (AIR.PA) A319 plane of Tibet Airlines burst into flames after aborting a take-off, prompting the evacuation of all passengers and crew of the Chinese airline.
The company said in a statement no deaths and only minor surgeries were reported among the 113 passengers and nine crew members on board flight TV9833 following the incident in the southwestern city of Chongqing.
Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) reported that 36 individuals were brought to local hospitals for the treatment of the bruises and sprains they sustained during the evacuation.
Authorities said the pilots interrupted the takeoff following procedures after experiencing abnormalities, resulting in an engine scrape and fire when the jet swerved off the runway.
China Eastern Crash Investigation May Take a Long Time
A China Eastern flight from Kunming to Guangzhou rapidly dropped and crashed on March 21, killing all 132 passengers on board. The Boeing 737 plane was shattered in the disaster and set fire to the nearby woodland, resulting in a 65-foot-deep crater on the slope.
A total of 49,000 pieces of plane debris were discovered.
According to Al Jazeera, a Wall Street Journal report stated that US officials suspect someone in the cockpit intentionally crashed the China Eastern flight into the ground.
The flight data recorders recovered from the scene of the crash were brought to the US for processing, and they revealed that someone - possibly a pilot or someone who forced their way into the cockpit - input orders to drive the plane into a plunge per the US National Transportation Safety Board's assessment.
During the quick descent, the pilots did not reply to numerous requests from air traffic controllers and neighboring planes, according to investigators. According to Reuters, authorities are investigating whether the incident was prompted by a "voluntary" act.
The CAAC said in a statement that the crew passed all safety standards before takeoff, that the jet was not carrying dangerous items, and that the plane did not appear to encounter adverse weather, though a comprehensive inquiry may take two or more years.
