Overview
- Newly released NTSB laboratory data obtained through a public records request shows both engine fuel switches moved from RUN to CUTOFF while the 737-800 cruised at 29,000 feet.
- The autopilot disconnected almost at once and sustained manual control inputs then sent the aircraft into an inverted roll and steep dive.
- The flight data recorder was badly damaged and stopped near 26,000 feet when electrical power failed, which limited how many parameters investigators could validate.
- U.S. analysts recovered four cockpit voice recordings and sent them to China’s Civil Aviation Administration, and the NTSB says it did not retain copies.
- China’s CAAC has not published a final report or addressed these specific findings, and it remains unknown who moved the switches as no distress call or emergency code was transmitted.