Three years after the China Eastern Airlines plane crash nears, on the 3rd of March, the company’s flight MU9845, an Airbus A320 aircraft, departing from Harbin and bound for Incheon, South Korea, on March 4th, experienced a case of “pilot incapacitation” shortly after takeoff, prompting an emergency return to the original airport. Due to Eastern Airlines’ safety record, this incident has drawn attention.
On March 5th, various mainland media outlets including China’s Fast Technology and Xiaoxiang Morning News reported that on the afternoon of March 4th at 5:09 pm, China Eastern Airlines MU9845 flight (Airbus A320) took off from Harbin heading to Incheon, South Korea, but faced a crisis of “pilot incapacitation” soon after departure. Shortly after takeoff, the co-pilot sent a Mayday distress signal to the control tower, and the flight had to make an emergency return landing, touching down in Harbin at 5:50 pm. Emergency personnel boarding the aircraft found the pilot foaming at the mouth and experiencing seizures.
According to FlightAware tracking, MU9845 was initially scheduled to depart at 5 pm and arrive in Incheon at 8 pm, but on the 4th, the departure was delayed to 9 pm with an arrival time of 11 pm.
A netizen disclosed on social media that the flight landed with an excessive landing weight. Following the touchdown, a runway inspection was conducted and the runway surface was reported to be normal.
Netizen “Nanyang Huishu” quoted a passenger on the flight, stating that about 15 minutes after takeoff, a passenger required urgent medical attention, prompting the aircraft to return. However, upon landing, medical personnel did not immediately board the plane to assist but instead “evacuated all passengers and waited for further instructions”.
Media reports from mainland China mentioned that after changing the aircraft, the flight successfully delivered the passengers to their destination in Seoul. Currently, China Eastern Airlines has not provided any official explanation regarding this incident.
In the aviation industry, the situation where a pilot is unable to complete a flight due to personal issues such as sudden illness or mental problems is referred to as “pilot incapacitation”.
This incident has sparked heated discussions among Chinese netizens on social media platform Weibo. Some speculate that the pilot’s symptoms could be related to epilepsy or caused by overwork. There are also doubts raised about whether the pilot may have been infected with the novel coronavirus. Many express concerns about China Eastern Airlines’ safety record, questioning the numerous issues and suggesting that a major incident may happen sooner or later.
A series of air crash events earlier this year have once again put aviation safety under the spotlight. As the third anniversary of the China Eastern Airlines plane crash on March 21 approaches, the final investigation report of the incident from that year has yet to be released.
On March 21, 2022, China Eastern Airlines flight MU5735 took off from Kunming and crashed into a valley in Guangxi after 64 minutes of flight, resulting in the loss of all souls on board. Following the accident, Chinese investigators stated that no malfunctions were found and conducted investigations into the actions of the crew members. In May of the same year, the American newspaper “The Wall Street Journal” reported that data from the crashed aircraft’s black boxes indicated deliberate manipulation leading to the crash of the Boeing 737-800. However, the Civil Aviation Administration of China stated that rumors about deliberate crashing of the plane “seriously misled the public”.