Small plane crashes into Beijing’s tallest skyscraper; police cordon off area, censor social media
A small aircraft slammed into the 108-storey CITIC Tower in Beijing's central business district on Friday evening, damaging glass panels on a high floor and scattering debris across the ground as authorities sealed off the area and restricted filming.
The crash and immediate aftermath
A small aircraft struck the CITIC Tower, Beijing’s tallest building at 528 metres, on the evening of Friday, June 26. Eyewitnesses reported a loud crash around 6 p.m. local time, and photos and video footage that briefly circulated online showed two shattered glass panels on an upper floor. Debris, including what appeared to be a tail section and a wing part, lay scattered near the base of the skyscraper. A courier who rushed to the scene after hearing the impact described the noise as “louder than fireworks.”
Police and emergency vehicles sealed off roads around the building in the central business district. Dozens of police cars and fire trucks lined the area, and officers prevented bystanders from taking pictures, ordering some to delete footage already recorded. One police officer, when asked why journalists had to leave, replied, “We all know why!”
Aircraft details and flight path
Flight tracking data identified the aircraft as a two-seat, single-engine Sunward SA60L Aurora, registration B‑12PP, a Chinese-made sport plane. The plane had taken off from Shifosi airfield on the eastern edge of Beijing, circled near the airfield, and then followed a direct flight path into the city centre before the impact. The aircraft belonged to a local aviation company, Shangyue, which offers pilot training and recreational flights, according to unconfirmed reports.
- Aircraft takes off from Shifosi airfield, circles, then flies directly toward central Beijing
- Plane strikes CITIC Tower's high floor; glass panels break, debris falls to the ground
Security clampdown and official silence
Social media posts showing damage to the building or debris were quickly removed from Chinese platforms. A search for the building’s name on the Xiaohongshu app returned only posts dated Thursday. Authorities did not issue any immediate statement. Beijing’s municipal government did not respond to a Reuters request for comment outside business hours. State media also did not report on the incident initially.
Questions over airspace restrictions
Beijing’s airspace is subject to strict controls, and all small aircraft and drone flights require special permission from both the civil aviation authority and the air force. In April, the capital introduced a blanket ban on drone sales and made every drone flight in the city conditional on prior approval. How the plane managed to reach the centre of the capital unnoticed remains unclear.
Unanswered questions
Authorities have not disclosed information about the pilot or any casualties. One person inside the building told AFP she evacuated down dozens of flights of stairs. Another expressed shock, saying, “Things like this shouldn’t happen in Beijing.” The building, also known as China Zun, houses the headquarters of state-owned conglomerate CITIC Group and has around 12,000 employees.
