Report of second black box found in China plane crash 'untrue'

[BEIJING] The newspaper of China's civil aviation regulator has apologised for an "untrue" report that the second black box from Monday's crash had been found.

The initial report created confusion after the newspaper reported the flight data recorder had been found, then deleted its post from WeChat minutes later.

Xinhua, China's state-run news agency, then said the device hadn't been located.

The black boxes will potentially provide clues as to why the China Eastern Airlines Corp jet with 132 people on board plunged out of the sky and into a hillside in southern China.

The Boeing 737-800 NG's cockpit voice recorder was retrieved on Wednesday and is being analysed at a laboratory in Beijing. Officials haven't ruled out the possibility it was damaged by the impact of the crash.

Hundreds of workers have been collecting wreckage at the site. One part measuring 1.3 meters long and 10 centimeters wide was found more than six miles from the aircraft's main point of impact, suggesting the plane suffered at least some form of breakup before crashing.

Human remains have also been found.

All 123 passengers and nine crew are presumed dead. BLOOMBERG