A newly released report indicates there may have been a struggle inside the cockpit of a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737 before it crashed into a mountain in March 2022, killing all 132 people on board. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report found that the fuel switches for both engines were moved from the run position to the cut-off position mid-flight, causing the engines to lose power.
The aircraft was flying from Kunming to Guangzhou when it suddenly nosedived from about 29,000 feet, briefly recovered, then slammed into a mountainside. The NTSB data shows that after the fuel was cut off, the plane nosedived and spun at least once, with the control wheels moving back and forth—a pattern that aviation experts say suggests a struggle between the pilots.
Former NTSB investigator Jeff Guzzetti told the Associated Press: “Typically when you want to roll an airplane, it’s a smooth movement of the control wheel in one direction. But here you have it moving back and forth, back and forth, as if someone is trying to counter the initial movement of the roll. So it’s not conclusive, but it sure has the earmarks of a struggle in the cockpit.”
Retired airline pilot John Cox noted that the fuel levers on a 737 are designed to be difficult to move accidentally, requiring them to be pulled out before they can be shifted. He said it was likely someone deliberately moved them to the cut-off position. The cockpit voice recorder may hold further clues, but no transcript has been released by Chinese authorities, who have yet to publish a final investigation report.
