All the seven crew members of the Azerbaijan cargo plane that crashed early Tuesday in Xinjiang, northwest China, had been confirmed dead and Chinese technical staff had found the black box undamaged in the rear part of the plane by Tuesday evening.

The bodies were sent to a hospital in Urumqi, Xinjiang's capital city, and the experts will examine and analyze the black box as soon as possible, said Liu Shaoyong, deputy director of theGeneral Administration of the Civil Aviation of China (CAAC).

An 11-member team led by Liu arrived at Urumqi and started investigation Tuesday afternoon. The Chinese government will carryout an objective, scientific investigation into the case in line with common international practices, said Liu.

The Azerbaijan cargo liner, a Russian-made IL-76, crashed at 10:50 a.m. Tuesday shortly after its takeoff from Urumqi.

The head of the chartered cargo plane first touched the earth, causing explosions and sending off dense smoke, eyewitnesses said.

No people on the ground were hurt when parts of the shattered plane and cargo it carried were scattered inside the 2-square-kilometer area around the site, which has been sealed off by the police. Firefighters have exterminated the fire caused by the crash.

The cargo plane was loaded with clothes and shoes that were purchased in Beijing and it also stopped over in Taiyuan, capital of north China's Shanxi province.

The plane arrived at Taiyuan at 3:30 p.m. on May 15 and set offat 5:50 a.m. Tuesday, said Qiao Xuezheng, an official with the management of Shanxi airports.

It passed through security checks on cargo, flight affairs and pilot operation before taking off from Taiyuan, said Qiao.