Welcomed with a conventional water salute at the Beijing Capital International Airport, the C919, China's first self-developed narrow-body jet, successfully completed its maiden commercial flight by its global customer China Eastern Airlines on Sunday.
China's C919 jetliner goes into commercial operation
The C919, China's first domestically developed large passenger jet, departed Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport for Beijing Capital International Airport at 10:32 am on Sunday, embarking on its first commercial flight.
The aircraft, developed by the Commercial Aircraft Corp of China, painted with a logo in the shape of a seal with Chinese characters "quanqiu shou jia", meaning first C919 in the world.
The fight, MU 9191, is run by China Eastern Airlines. About 130 passengers are on board. The flight duration is about two hours and 25 minutes.
China Eastern Airlines received the first C919 on Dec 9 and launched test flights later that month.
According to a report published by the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, 32 clients had placed a total of 1,035 orders for the plane as of the end of 2022.
Background:
The C919 project was launched in 2007. Developed by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd (COMAC), the first C919 aircraft rolled off the production line in Shanghai in November 2015.
The plane conducted a successful maiden flight in 2017.
In the following years, the C919 conducted several test flights in different locations to test its capabilities.
The C919 has gone through tests in various types of extreme natural environments including high temperature, high humidity, severe cold, gusts and freeze. Its safety, reliability, and environmental protection performance have been comprehensively assessed.
It obtained the type certificate in September 2022, which indicates that the jetliner's design meets airworthiness standards and environmental requirements.
The plane received its production certificate on Nov 29, 2022, meaning the model can enter mass production.
On Dec 9, 2022, the first C919 aircraft was delivered to its first customer, China Eastern Airlines.
After the delivery, the C919 jetliner completed its 100-hour aircraft validation flight process, comprehensively verifying its reliability with commercial operation in mind.
The C919 had gained 1,035 orders from 32 customers by the end of 2022, according to the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai.
The successful development of the C919 indicates that China has the ability to independently develop large passenger aircraft.
Xinhua
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