Beijing, Aug 25 (IANS): The black box of a passenger plane, which crashed in northeast China killing 42 people, was found Wednesday morning.

The E-190 jet of Henan Airlines with 91 passengers and five crew crashed late Tuesday near the Lindu airport on the outskirts of Yichun city in Heilongjiang province, Xinhua reported.

All the injured passengers have been hospitalised.

Captain of Crashed Chinese Plane Alive 

The captain of the passenger plane that crashed in northeast China killing 42 people late Tuesday is alive, but unable to talk, doctors said.

It appeared that Qi Quanjun, lying on a hospital bed, could understand the questions, but he had difficulties in talking due to severe face injuries, doctors said. He does not have life-threatening conditions, Xinhua reported Wednesday.

The bodies of 42 passengers were recovered from the wreckage of the plane which crashed near the Lindu airport on the outskirts of Yichun city in Heilongjiang province, an official said.

Yichun Mayor Wang Aiwen Wednesday corrected the death toll to 42 from the previously reported 43. Fifty-four others were injured, including seven severely, he said.

The injured are being treated in four medical institutes in the city.

Families were seen waiting anxiously at an open ground in front of the airport.

The ERJ-190 jet, manufactured by the Brazilian aerospace conglomerate Embraer with maximum passenger capacity of 108, crashed near the runaway of Lindu airport of Yichun at 9:36 p.m. Tuesday, some 40 minutes after it took off from the provincial capital Harbin.

Ninety-one passengers, including five children, and five crew members boarded the plane, sources with the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said.

The cause of the crash is being investigated.

The tragedy prompted Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang to lead a team of transportation, health, work safety, and security officials to Yichun overnight.

Lindu Airport is located in a forest some nine km away from downtown Yichun, a city with about one million population.

China had kept a remarkable air travel safety record of about 2,100 days -- or 69 months -- without accidents before the passenger plane crash in Yichun city Tuesday, statistics from the CAAC show.

More than five years ago, a CRJ-200 jet, owned by China Eastern Airlines, crashed shortly after take-off into a park in Baotou city, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, killing all 53 people on board and two others on the ground.

China Minister Hurt in Plane Crash  

A Chinese vice minister was amongst the 54 seriously injured in the plane crash in Heilongjiang province that left 42 people dead.

The passenger aircraft overshot the runway and burst into flames while landing at Lindu airport in Yichun city Tuesday night.

Xinhua news agency reported that Vice Minister of Human Resources and Social Security Sun Baoshu was in a critical condition.

"He suffered broken bones and injures in the brain and lungs," said Li Jinchang, a doctor who operated on Sun.

The doctor said the operation lasted for four hours until 2 a.m.

Someone Threw Me Out, Says Boy Who Survived China Crash 

 "Someone dragged me to the emergency exit door and threw me out," said an eight-year-old survivor of the horrific crash in China's Heilongjiang Province that killed 42 people.

The passenger aircraft overshot the runway and burst into flame while landing at Yichun city's Lindu airport Tuesday night, killing 42 and injuring 54 people. The Embraer E-190 jet crashed at 9.36 p.m.

Said eight-year-old Ji Yifan: "Someone dragged me to the emergency exit door and threw me out before I realized what was going on."

The evacuation slide, which was also on fire, broke just as Ji was sliding down.

"I fell to the ground. Again someone dragged me aside," Xinhua quoted the boy as saying.

A man who was slightly injured in the head remembered strong turbulence after the crew announced the aircraft was about to land. The plane had taken off from Harbin city.

"There were four or five bad turbulence and luggage in the overhead bin were raining down," he said.

"Everyone panicked. Those sitting in the back began rushing to the front of the cabin."

Recalling the horrifying crash, he said: "There was smog, which I knew was toxic. I held my breath and ran on until I saw a burning hole on one side of the cabin. I crawled out and ran at least 100 meters to ensure I was safe."

Two of the five crew members survived the crash. The surviving crew members are the captain and an attendant.

Officials said that 18 officials from Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and its provincial branches were also on board. They were heading for a meeting in Yichun.

The jet broke into two pieces before it smashed into the ground and exploded. Most of the casualties were found in the back of the cabin.

The plane is owned by Henan Airlines.