China's top leadership says cause of plane crash must be found soon

The cause of the crash of the China Eastern Airlines jet last week must be determined as soon as possible, state media said on Thursday, following a meeting of China's highest decision-making body helmed by President Xi Jinping. Information about the March 21 crash, which killed all 132 people onboard, must be released in an open, timely and transparent manner, state media said in a report on the meeting of the seven-person Standing Committee of the Communist Party's politburo, China's top leadership. A nationwide safety inspection should also be launched to prevent as much as possible the occurrence of safety accidents, state media said. If accidents do happen due to negligence, not only will the personnel in charge be punished, the relevant top officials will also be investigated, state media said. Earlier on Thursday, an aviation official said China has completed the main search and rescue work at the mountainside in southern China where the crash of the Boeing 737-800 happened, and a preliminary report is expected within 30 days of the disaster. A final report into the crash will be completed and made public after the investigation is concluded, CAAC safety head Zhu Tao told reporters. Citing the Standing Committee meeting, state media said all relevant parties investigating the crash are to gather experts to comprehensively analyse the aircraft's flight data and other evidence, and find out the cause and nature of the crash "as soon as possible".<br/>