Watchdog suspends Huaxia Airlines flights

China's aviation watchdog has ordered Huaxia Airlines to suspend all flights after the wings of one of its planes scraped the ground while landing, state media reported yesterday.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China ordered the private carrier to launch a thorough safety inspection of all of its aircraft and suspend ticket sales, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.
The wings of a Huaxia jet scraped the ground when landing at the southwestern city of Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou province, shortly after midnight on Saturday.
No injuries were reported among passengers travelling from the northern city of Shijiazhuang, and the cause of the accident was still under investigation, the report said.
The incident came less than a week after a Brazilian-made Henan Airlines regional jet crashed in heavy fog in the northeastern city of Yichun late Tuesday, leaving 42 people dead but 54 survivors.
It was China's first major air disaster since 2004.
Huaxia Airlines, a private airline company based in Guizhou province, launched operations in September 2006.
Authorities said they would decide when the carrier could resume its flights after reviewing the results of the probe.