Small Plane Strikes Beijing Skyscraper, Killing Pilot and Wounding 13

A small plane crashed into the CITIC Tower in Beijing on Friday, killing the pilot who was the only person on board and wounding 13 people, BBC News reported. The collision left holes on the side of the 109-storey building, which have since been boarded up.

The plane was a two-seat, single-engine Aurora SA60L manufactured by Sunward Aircraft, measuring 6.9 metres long with a wingspan of 8.6 metres.

Beijing Daily published a 60-word report on the incident. At least three aviation firms have been instructed to suspend light aircraft operations. The crash occurred just a few kilometres from Zhongnanhai, the Communist Party's headquarters.

Beijing maintains a permanent no-fly zone of roughly 100 square kilometres over its political core, including Tiananmen Square. Dramatic footage of the incident has been removed from the internet. Photographs and memes of the CITIC Tower unrelated to the crash have also been taken down from Chinese social media platforms.

Beijing recently tightened regulations requiring drones to be registered before being brought into or out of the city.