Beijing —
A man who flew his plane into Beijing’s tallest skyscraper last week was a 66-year-old local resident who had expressed suicidal thoughts, Chinese authorities said Monday, amid intense speculation about the pilot’s identity and motivation.
The crash took place on Friday evening when a small plane appeared to evade some of the world’s strictest aviation controls and slam into the 109-story CITIC Tower that dominates the capital’s skyline, killing the pilot and injuring 13 other people.
The incident was strictly censored in China and it took nearly a day for authorities to acknowledge the crash.
On Monday, authorities released new details about who was flying the plane.
