Domestic large aircraft delivered to Air China and China Southern Airlines

On August 28th, the night delivery line at the Shanghai Aircraft Manufacturing Factory was still brightly lit. As the hangar doors slowly opened, the first C919 domestic large aircraft, painted with the Chinese national flag, was handed over to the long-awaited Air China, and another brand-new C919 was simultaneously delivered to China Southern Airlines. To date, nine C919 domestic large aircraft have been delivered, covering the three major airlines: Air China, China Southern Airlines, and China Eastern Airlines. It is noteworthy that this is the first time the C919 passenger aircraft has been delivered to a flag carrier. A flag carrier is an airline designated by a country or government to represent it on international routes. Most aircraft under a flag carrier bear the national flag, such as Lufthansa and British Airways. Not far from the delivery line, inside the final assembly workshop of the Shanghai Aircraft Manufacturing Factory, six aircraft are lined up, with C919s for China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and Air China being manufactured around the clock. On-site staff informed us that there are currently 1,200 employees in the final assembly workshop, working in three shifts, striving to deliver more aircraft as soon as possible. With the increasing number of C919 deliveries, the domestic large aircraft's presence is continuously appearing on more domestic flight routes. Since its commercial maiden flight, the China Eastern Airlines C919 has been operating smoothly for 15 consecutive months, flying on five regular routes, accumulating over 3,600 commercial flights, and logging 10,000 flight hours. The domestic market is rapidly expanding, and the international market is also accelerating its development. In August 2024, the C919 received a "positive feedback" from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for its international airworthiness certification, further speeding up the certification process; overseas airshows targeting Southeast Asia and the Middle East have also attracted much attention. Looking back at the key words for the C919 in recent years, 2022 was about obtaining certification, 2023 was about the maiden flight, and 2024 is about accelerating the entry into service.

Full Coverage of the Three Major Airlines

The C919 large passenger aircraft is a new generation of single-aisle mainline aircraft developed by China in accordance with internationally accepted airworthiness standards, with full independent intellectual property rights, seating 158-168 passengers, and a range of 4075-5555 kilometers. In the first half of this year, China Southern Airlines and Air China have made extensive preparations to receive the C919 aircraft. According to official announcements, the first batch of eight captains from China Southern Airlines completed C919 crew conversion training in July; in August, the first batch of ten pilots from Air China also obtained C919 aircraft type certificates. In addition to crew training, China Southern Airlines has also developed exclusive meals for the C919, including 24 sets of Cantonese meals, Cantonese breakfast, and four-grid hot meals. In terms of cabin layout, it adopts a three-cabin layout with 164 seats, including eight business class seats, 18 Pearl Business Class seats, and 138 economy class seats. Air China has announced the most spacious C919 cabin layout to date, divided into two classes with a total of 158 seats, of which there are eight business class seats and 150 economy class seats. As the world's first C919 user, China Eastern Airlines currently has seven C919 aircraft. Since the start of commercial operations on May 28, 2023, by early August, China Eastern Airlines' C919 fleet has accumulated 3,133 commercial flights, carrying nearly 420,000 passengers. It operates on five regular routes: Shanghai Hongqiao - Chengdu Tianfu, Shanghai Hongqiao - Beijing Daxing, Shanghai Hongqiao - Xi'an Xianyang, Shanghai Hongqiao - Guangzhou Baiyun, and Xi'an Xianyang - Beijing Daxing. In addition, Golden Phoenix Airlines, a subsidiary of Hainan Airlines, will also receive its first C919 passenger aircraft in the fourth quarter of this year, with plans to introduce 30 C919 aircraft. According to the company's plan, over the next three to four years, Golden Phoenix Airlines' passenger aircraft fleet will gradually be adjusted to a single domestic C919 aircraft. Tibet Airlines, with the most high-altitude operation experience, has also signed an order with COMAC for 50 domestic large aircraft, including 40 high-altitude C919s and 10 high-altitude ARJ-21 aircraft. In the future, as the number of C919 deliveries increases, flight schedules and routes will continue to be updated, and the domestic large aircraft's route network is gradually being laid out.

The Next Step is to Go GlobalAccelerate the deployment and use, not only domestically but also internationally. The C919's entry into the international market is divided into two scenarios: one is as an aircraft registered with Chinese nationality flying abroad, and the other is selling Chinese-made aircraft overseas. For flying abroad, as a member state of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), China has established an airworthiness certification system that complies with the requirements of the "Convention on International Civil Aviation" and its annexes. The airworthiness certificate issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) is recognized by other member states of the ICAO. Therefore, the C919 aircraft registered and certificated in China can already fly to various parts of the world. The situation for selling abroad is slightly more complex because the exported aircraft need to be registered in the importing country or region, which requires obtaining airworthiness approval from that country or region. Internationally, the airworthiness approvals from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) are considered benchmarks by most countries. Therefore, obtaining international airworthiness certification from the FAA or EASA is crucial for the C919 to go global. The civil aviation work conference held earlier this year clearly proposed that this year, it is necessary to complete the certification of key national models such as the CJ-1000A and AG600, promote the EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency) recognition review of the C919 aircraft, and facilitate the export of domestically produced civil aircraft. COMAC applied for EASA certification for the first time in 2019, and with the first commercial passenger flight and the opening of domestic routes, the certification process has been further accelerated. Recently, it has received positive feedback from EASA for airworthiness certification. According to the Global Times, the European regulatory authorities conducted an on-site certification inspection of the C919 aircraft in Shanghai in July. This is the second on-site inspection of the C919 by EU technicians after March this year. They spent several hours examining the cockpit and cabin and discussed specific details with representatives of the Civil Aviation Administration of China. This inspection is the third phase of the EASA's four-stage certification process - compliance verification, which is the most critical part of the certification process. In this phase, aircraft manufacturers must prove that their products comply with regulatory requirements in terms of structure, engines, control systems, electrical systems, and flight performance. This inspection marks another step forward in the European regulatory authorities' understanding of Chinese aircraft and their design and manufacturing. Since the beginning of this year, COMAC has started promoting the C919 in the Southeast Asian market, attracting much attention with several "going global" shows. COMAC showcased the C919 aircraft at an overseas airshow for the first time; the C919 and another COMAC aircraft, the ARJ21, also conducted demonstration flights in five countries: Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Currently, Lion Mentari Airlines, an operator of the ARJ21 regional aircraft in Indonesia, and Royal Brunei Airlines, which has a purchase agreement for 30 aircraft with COMAC, are considered potential first buyers for the C919's export. The export of domestically produced large aircraft is gradually becoming a reality.