The C919 — China’s first domestically designed commercial airliner — officially entered into service on Sunday, marking the nation’s foray into the global aircraft market.
A jet carrying 130 passengers departed from Shanghai at 10:30 a.m. local time (9:30 p.m. CT) and arrived approximately two hours later in Beijing on May 28, inaugurating the C919 into commercial flight service under state-owned operator China Eastern Airlines.
“Sitting in the China-made passenger aircraft C919, I felt extremely excited and proud,” said Zhang Keli, a student from Beihang University, according to China Daily.
Backed by the state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), production of the C919 began in 2011, and it first went airborne in a 2017 test flight. The jetliner’s certification process for commercial flight service was long delayed but finally awarded last year.
As opposed to other Chinese aircraft using U.S. jetliners as a model, the C919 features fuselage and wing designs by Chinese engineers. The hydraulic system, engines, avionics, and landing gear are nonetheless based on Western designs, as per the industry standard.
The industry is currently dominated by French manufacturer Airbus and U.S. manufacturer Boeing, more specifically, the A320 and B737 carriers.
While Airbus has been slowly overtaking Boeing in terms of delivery volumes these past few years, the two giants dominate the global industry for domestic and regional commercial flights.
Nonetheless, the C919 is expected to make waves as a single-aisle jet capable of carrying between 158 and 168 passengers for a maximum range of approximately 3,500 miles.
COMAC reported that over 1,200 C919 jetliners had been ordered, five of which are destined for China Eastern Airlines.
COMAC aims to bring 40,600 of its aircraft — including the C919 and ARJ21 — to the global market before 2039 for a total of $5.9 trillion.
Although continuing to source various key components from the Western market, COMAC’s development of the C919 points to China’s endeavor to increase its global standing in transportation technology.
For instance, China also celebrated the completion of its first domestic cruise ship this year, according to the South China Morning Post.
Named the Adora Magic City, the 135,500-ton ship with a capacity of 5,246 passengers will hit the seas by the end of this year.
As The Dallas Express reported, since the presidency of Xi Jinping began in 2012, China has targeted ascendancy in all domains, including military, space, trade, and science.