Two more Chinese airlines to start flying China-made COMAC C919 jet

Date:

Share post:


BEIJING (Reuters) – Air China and China Southern Airlines will become the second and third Chinese carriers to fly China’s homegrown COMAC C919 passenger jet when their first planes are delivered on Wednesday, state-run Chinese Central TV said.

Chinese planemaker COMAC is trying to break into a passenger jet market dominated by Western manufacturers Airbus and Boeing that has been strained by aircraft shortages and a Boeing safety crisis.

The C919 entered domestic service in May last year with China Eastern, which flies seven of the jets domestically.

China’s three big state-owned airlines have each ordered 100 C919s, and COMAC has said more than 1,000 have been ordered overall.

China Southern last week said on social media platform Weibo that the first C919 would be integrated into its fleet by Wednesday.

The C919 seats up to 192 people and is in a similar category as Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A320neo planes.

COMAC this year has increased sales and production plans and has been marketing the C919 abroad, especially within Southeast Asia and also to growing aviation market Saudi Arabia.

It is also developing a wide-body plane design.

Zhongtai Securities last month said it expects COMAC to be able to produce 100 aircraft a year by around 2030, with total jets produced exceeding 1,000 by 2035.

Airbus delivered 735 commercial aircraft in 2023.

Industry sources caution that COMAC is a long way from making inroads internationally, especially without benchmark certifications from the United States or European Union – which COMAC is pursuing – or more efficient planes.

A forecast from aviation consultancy Cirium in May sees just under 1,700 C919 deliveries by 2042, giving the C919 around a 25% market share compared to Boeing’s 30% and Airbus’s 45%.

The first C919 delivery to a private airline is expected by year-end.

Shanghai-based Suparna Airlines, a subsidiary of China’s fourth biggest carrier Hainan Airlines which has 60 C919s on order, has said it eventually aims to fly only C919s.

China will more than double its commercial airplane fleet by 2043 and will need 8,830 new planes, Boeing’s annual Commercial Market Outlook said in July.

(Reporting by Sophie Yu and Lisa Barrington; Editing by Miral Fahmy)



Source link

Alexandra Williams
Alexandra Williams
Alexandra Williams is a writer and editor. Angeles. She writes about politics, art, and culture for LinkDaddy News.

Recent posts

Related articles

Satire publication The Onion buys Alex Jones' Infowars at auction with help from Sandy Hook families

The satirical news publication The Onion won the bidding for Alex Jones' Infowars at a bankruptcy auction,...

Video appears to show a Ukrainian Leopard tank taking out a column of Russian armored vehicles

Ukraine released a video showing an attack on a Russian armored convoy.The brigade said a Leopard 2...

Iowa's list of the 35 lowest-performing schools now includes 12 from Des Moines

A dozen schools in Iowa's largest public school district have been identified by the state as "in...

At 8:21 a.m.: SpaceX set for Falcon 9 rocket launch from Florida’s Space Coast

SpaceX crews are preparing to launch a Falcon 9 rocket Thursday morning from Florida’s Space Coast.SpaceX is...

Sinkhole Swallows Motorcycles in Madrid After Water Pipe Breaks

A sinkhole caused by a burst water pipe forced a partial road closure in Madrid, Spain, on...

First-Ever Amber Discovered in Antarctica Shows Rainforest Existed Near South Pole

Imagine a time machine that could whisk you back to the age of the dinosaurs. Suddenly, you...

China's president will unveil a megaport in Peru, but locals say they're being left out

CHANCAY, Peru (AP) — On the edge of Peru’s coastal desert, a remote fishing town where a...

This 'morphing' wheel could allow wheelchairs to climb stairs

STORY: :: KIMMThis is not your average wheelchair.Researchers in South Korea have developed what they claim is...