American pilot, Chinese killed in plane crash in China

BEIJING: An American pilot and a Chinese passenger were killed when a light aircraft crashed in east China's Anhui Province within minutes after taking off.

The American pilot, who has not been identified yet, and the passenger were dead when firefighters reached the scene in Suixi County, Huaibei City.

The aircraft belonged to George Heintz Aircraft Manufacturing Co in the central province of Henan, according to local police.

The aircraft crashed within minutes after taking off at noon and caught fire, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

An initial investigation showed the pilot was from the US and the passenger was from south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.