Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - May 16, 2018 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Crew members, others taking seat for press conference
2. Captain Liu Chuanjian (L), co-pilot Liang Peng (R) at press conference
3. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Liu Chuanjian, captain, Sichuan Airlines 3U8633:
"The reason I made such a decision is that I know clearly about the malfunction. I didn't hesitate to make the decision because I was on that route for over 100 times. I know well the whereabouts and the general condition of the plane."
4. Press conference
5. Liu speaking
6. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Liu Chuanjian, captain, Sichuan Airlines 3U8633:
"While I was reporting, in less than a second I heard a bang. I didn't know what happened. When I opened my eyes and I found the co-pilot was sucked half out. I tried to grasped him but failed. And I found the plane was descending at an accelerating speed."
7. Phone screen showing Liu, Liang at press conference
8. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Liu Chuanjian, captain, Sichuan Airlines 3U8633:
"During our training, we had various kinds of subjects. This is one of them, so I am quite familiar with it."
9. Liu and other crew members at press conference
10. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Liu Chuanjian, captain, Sichuan Airlines 3U8633:
"At that time, I thought I could control the plane. This determined the safety of the plane."
11. Various of crew members at press conference

The captain of Sichuan Airlines 3U8633 flight recalled the critical moments when a cockpit window broke mid-flight, saying that he was confident about the safety of the plane.

Captain Liu Chuanjian provided the details at a press conference held in Chengdu, capital city of southwest China’s Sichuan Province, on Wednesday.

Flight 3U8633 was bound for Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region from the southwestern city of Chongqing when the cockpit window shattered at about 9,800 meters on Monday.

After the accident, the flight was diverted to the city of Chengdu in Sichuan Province, and Liu made an emergency landing there.

"The reason I made such a decision is that I know clearly about the malfunction. I didn't hesitate to make the decision because I was on that route for over 100 times. I know well the whereabouts and the general condition of the plane," said Liu.

Liu said that he found cracks on the front right windshield of the Airbus A319 during cruise phrase and tried to touch the cracks to see on which layer of glass the cracks were located.

Then he reported it to the air traffic control authorities immediately.

"While I was reporting, in less than a second I heard a bang. I didn't know what happened. When I opened my eyes and I found the co-pilot was sucked half out. I tried to grasped him but failed. And I found the plane was descending at an accelerating speed," said Liu.

After Liu realized what had happened, he was confident that the plane could land safely, as the accident is one of the problems he dealt with in training.

"During our training, we had various kinds of subjects. This is one of them, so I am quite familiar with it," said Liu.

As Liu knows well how to handle the emergency, he was confident.

"At that time, I thought I could control the plane. This determined the safety of the plane," Liu said.

The airliner's producer Airbus has formed a technical team to launch an investigation into the accident.

The Airbus A319 was delivered to Sichuan Airlines in July 2011, and has flown about 19,942 hours.