A senior Chinese aviation official threw himself in front of a railway train this week, the Xinhua news agency said, attributing his suicide to ongoing corruption investigations that have shaken the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

Liu Yajun, the 50-year-old head of CAAC’s Central and Southern Regional Administration, killed himself in late- June, just months after taking office in February, Xinhua said, citing airport sources. Since the start of the year, four senior aviation officials have lost their positions due to charges of corruption, including the deputy minister.

A corruption investigation of the chief of CAAC’s North China Regional Administration, had triggered further investigations, including seven officials at China Southern Airlines, as well as China Eastern, Xinhua said.

Among those understood to be under investigation is former Beijing airport chief Zhang Zhizhong. Zhang had taken over as head of the airport from Li Peiying, who was put to death in August 2009 after the People’s Supreme Court upheld his sentence in a US$16 million bribery and embezzlement case.