Second 'black box' recovered from crashed Chinese airliner

Firefighters searching the crash site of a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 that nosedived into a mountainside last week recovered the plane's second "black box" on Sunday, Reuters reports.

The crash, which occurred on Monday just as the flight from Kunming to Guangzhou was about to begin its descent, was China's deadliest air disaster in 28 years. According to The Associated Press, all 132 people on board, including 123 passengers and nine crew members, were killed.

Recovery crews found the first black box — the cockpit voice recorder — on Wednesday, per AP. The second black box — the flight data recorder — is expected to shed light on what caused the plane to enter its fatal nosedive.

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"We extend our deepest condolences for the loss of those on board China Eastern Airlines Flight MU 5735. Our thoughts and prayers are with the passengers and crew, their families and all those affected by this accident," Boeing said in a statement Saturday. "In addition, a Boeing technical team is supporting the [National Transportation Safety Board] and the Civil Aviation Administration of China who will lead the investigation."

The NTSB is an American agency, but participates in investigations overseas if the incident involves "a civil aircraft of U.S. Registry, a U.S. operator, or an aircraft of U.S. design or U.S. manufacture" and if the country in which the incident took place is a signatory to the International Civil Aviation Organization Convention.