Story perspectives

NTSB Data Shows Fuel Cut, Engine Loss Trigger Dive

5/5/2026

Summary

Pilot Initiates Dive

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released data on May 1 showing both fuel switches moved to cutoff at 29,000 ft.
Engine speeds fell, cutting power to both engines and disengaging autopilot.
The pilot pulled the control column left and forward, sending the plane into a dive.
The flight-data recorder stopped at about 26,000 ft while the cockpit-voice recorder stayed on backup.
No final report has been issued because authorities cite national-security reasons.

Summary

CAAC Withholds

Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said releasing the full report could jeopardize national security and social stability.
Critics condemned the agency’s opacity and demanded black-box data publication.
The 32-year-old captain, who had 6,700 flight hours, and the 59-year-old first officer, who had 31,800 hours, were crew members.
Public pressure rose after CAAC refused to name which crew were in the cockpit when the engines shut off.

History

Historical Context

Decades of opaque crash investigations date back to the Civil Aeronautics Board’s 1965 report on Pan Am Flight 214, which recovered 95 percent of its flight-data tape yet left lightning’s role unsettled. The NTSB’s 1972 final report on another Pan Am accident reinforced calls for open data, a tension that resurfaces whenever agencies limit black-box access.

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Pilot Initiates Dive

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released data on May 1 showing both fuel switches moved to cutoff at 29,000 ft.
Engine speeds fell, cutting power to both engines and disengaging autopilot.
The pilot pulled the control column left and forward, sending the plane into a dive.
The flight-data recorder stopped at about 26,000 ft while the cockpit-voice recorder stayed on backup.
No final report has been issued because authorities cite national-security reasons.

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