China's civil aviation circle has gone through an unprecedented overhaul in which a number of officials and airline executives have been netted by the top anti-graft watchdog over the past five months.

In the latest high-profile case, Zhou Laizhen, 55, deputy director of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, is suspected of "severe violations" of Party discipline, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said in a brief statement on its website on Tuesday night. It did not give further information.

Zhou was in charge of the planning, financial and airport departments at the administration.