Pilot with Chronic Insomnia Crashes into Beijing's Tallest Skyscraper, Killing Himself

1. The pilot, identified only by his surname Liu, was a 66‑year‑old Beijing resident who had been suffering from chronic insomnia and anxiety, and he deliberately crashed his small aircraft into the CITIC Tower for personal reasons, authorities said Thursday.

Liu’s crash killed him and wounded 13 others. The pilot was a divorced freelancer who lived alone, and his diary contained multiple expressions of ending his life.

A comprehensive investigation concluded that this was a case of endangering public safety caused by personal reasons. One of the injured has been discharged from the hospital, officials said.

Videos of the crash at the CITIC Tower were widely circulated on social media before being scrubbed from the Chinese internet, raising concerns about a huge security breach.

The 109‑storey CITIC Tower, also known as China Zun, is located just a few kilometres from Zhongnanhai, the Communist Party’s headquarters. The building has long been treated by many locals as a lucky charm, but shortly after the crash, even unrelated photos and memes of the skyscraper were taken down from Chinese social media platforms.

In the days after the crash, at least three aviation firms told the BBC that they had been instructed to suspend light aircraft operations. On the afternoon of the crash, Liu had taken off from an airport in Pinggu district and conducted both accompanying and solo flights. During his solo flight, he deviated from the designated area, lost contact with the airport, and subsequently collided with the high‑rise building, dying at the scene.

According to authorities, Liu had obtained his sport pilot’s licence in 2021 and his private pilot’s licence in 2024. The plane he flew last week was a two‑seat, single‑engine Aurora SA60L manufactured by Chinese company Sunward Aircraft, according to flight‑tracking service Flightradar24. At 6.9 m long, with a wingspan of 8.6 m, it is designed for touring, aerial photography and recreational aviation.