Editorial | China aviation at new heights with the C919
- Pre-delivery test flights under way for nation’s latest commercial passenger plane, which will be a direct competitor to Boeing and Airbus aircraft
The Chinese aerospace industry has a multifaceted attraction, being about technological and economic growth, commercial interests, diplomacy and prestige.
A milestone on several levels has therefore been attained with pre-delivery test flights under way for the nation’s first commercial passenger plane that will be a direct competitor to aircraft produced by the global duopoly of Boeing and Airbus.
The aviation dominance of the American and European firms is a challenge for the state-run Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac), its C919 narrow-bodied jet directly taking on the decades-long success of the B737 and A320.
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China completes maiden pre-delivery test flight of C919 commercial passenger aircraft
But competition is good, spurring innovation and technological advances that will benefit passengers and cargo operators in China, the region and beyond.
Comac hopes to deliver its first C919 in a matter of months to its Shanghai hometown carrier, China Eastern Airlines. The firm has ordered five of the two-engine, single-aisle, jets and is among 28 operators to have shown an interest.
But moving from the drawing board in 2011 to being on the cusp of delivery has been drawn out several years longer than anticipated, with regulatory, technological and supply issues causing delays.
A particular problem has been the trade war between the United States and China, and restrictions imposed by the administration of former president Donald Trump holding up shipments of Western-manufactured engines and parts.
