First commercial flight for the Chinese C919

The Chinese-designed and manufactured C919 aircraft took off today for its first commercial flight, the country’s media reported.

The China Eastern Airlines medium-haul passenger flight took off from Shanghai’s Heoxiao Airport at 10:32am (local time; 05:32am Greek time) and landed in the capital Beijing at 8am Greek time. Cameras on China’s state television network CCTV broadcast live the moment the plane took off, marking its official entry into the civil aviation market.

COMAC’s aircraft development began fifteen years ago, part of the Asian giant’s drive to become more self-sufficient. It is considered to compete with the A320neo (Airbus) and the 737 MAX (Boeing). Chinese President Xi Jinping has said that this is an important and innovative achievement of his country.

China Eastern ordered five aircraft of the type in March 2021 and took delivery of the first aircraft in December. He expects the rest within the year.

In total, domestic carriers have ordered more than 1,200 aircraft from COMAC, according to company data. For the C919, the Chinese market is fairly well characterized. However, its export prospects are uncertain because it has not been certified by regulatory bodies in Europe and America (EASA and FAA, respectively). COMAC predicts that production will reach 150 models in five years.

Source: APE-ME, AFP, REUTERS, XINHUA