Name: Small aircraft hits Beijing’s tallest skyscraper, prompting evacuations
Uploaded: 2026-06-27T08:48:11.000Z
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Description: Small aircraft hits Beijing’s tallest skyscraper, prompting evacuations

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Shi Huang

Authorities in China have confirmed the death of the pilot of a light sport aircraft that hit Beijing’s tallest skyscraper on Friday.
In a statement on Saturday, the Chaoyang district government said the pilot was alone in the two-seater plane when it hit Citic Tower.
In addition, 13 people were injured in the incident.
The statement, issued after hours of silence, said the crash took place at 5.55pm on Friday and the circumstances surrounding the incident were still under investigation.
It did not name the building and only referred to it as a skyscraper near the East Third Ring Road.


The incident triggered the building’s evacuation and scattered debris across the Chinese capital’s central business district.
According to air traffic site Flightradar24, a Sunward SA 60L Aurora aircraft with the registration number B-12PP took off from Beijing Shifosi Airport in Pinggu district in the capital’s outskirts and instead of landing again at the airport, flew westward towards downtown Beijing.
The plane’s transponder was apparently switched off or stopped functioning as it neared the central business district, which is a no-fly zone.
“ADS-B data for the flight only includes a partial flight path and stops prior to the crash,” Flightradar24 said in a social media post, referring to the automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast system that transmits real-time data.
Photos online show wreckage with a matching registration number.
According to Flightradar24, the aircraft belonged to Dongshi Shuangyue (Beijing) General Aviation, a flying school.
Dongshi Shuangyue, or “Eastern Pioneer”, is affiliated with prominent driving school company Dongfang Shishang and is based at the Pinggu airport.
A woman who answered a call to the company on Saturday morning said the pilot of the aircraft was not a trainee.
“This is not our trainee and our aircraft cannot fly that far to Beijing,” the woman said, refusing to give her name before hanging up.
The airport is about 50km (31 miles) from Citic Tower and the aircraft’s signal disappeared when the plane was about 6.5km from the tower.
Beijing has strict no-fly zone regulations, particularly within the Third Ring Road.
The zone extends to roughly the Sixth Ring Road in the north and east and further out in the south and west.
No-fly zones also cover key sites and facilities.
According to Flightradar24, the plane’s signal disappeared within the no-fly zone and between the Fourth and Fifth Ring Road.


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The crash of the light sport aircraft scattered debris across Beijing’s central business district. Photo: X.com/Takemikazuchi26

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District authorities say that only one person was in the two-seater light aircraft at the time of the incident


District authorities say that only one person was in the two-seater light aircraft at the time of the incident.


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.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}District authorities say that only one person was in the two-seater light aircraft at the time of the incident

District authorities say that only one person was in the two-seater light aircraft at the time of the incident