It has been reported by several news media sources that a small aircraft crashed into the CITIC Tower on June 26, damaging the façade of Beijing’s tallest building and currently the 10th tallest building in the world.
Chinese authorities have not released official information of the occurrence, and reporting has come from other sources. The aircraft was identified by flight tracking service Flightradar24 as a Sunward SA 60L Aurora, that reportedly struck the 528-meter skyscraper shortly before 6 p.m. local time after departing from an airport approximately 50 kilometers east of the capital. Some sources say that witnesses heard a loud impact before debris fell onto nearby streets, leading authorities to evacuate parts of the area and establish a security perimeter around the building. Images that have circulated on social media appear to show damage to the tower’s upper façade, though the extent of the damage, the cause of the crash, or whether there were any casualties have yet to be confirmed.
Completed in 2018, the CITIC Tower is a defining landmark of Beijing’s skyline and serves as a major office building within the city’s financial district.
CVU will continue to monitor reports of the incident and will update this article as new information is released.