China’s First Domestically Produced Passenger Jet Takes Maiden Commercial Flight

On Sunday, China’s first domestically produced passenger jet made its maiden commercial flight. The C919 commercial jetliner is a milestone event in the nation’s decades-long effort to compete with Western rivals in the air. Beijing hopes that the C919 will challenge foreign models like the Boeing 737 MAX and the Airbus A320, though many of its parts are sourced from abroad. Its first homegrown jetliner with mass commercial potential would also cut the country’s reliance on foreign technology as ties with the West deteriorate.

Maiden Flight

China Eastern Airlines flight MU9191 from Shanghai “arrived smoothly” in Beijing just after 12:30 pm, around 40 minutes ahead of schedule, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Footage showed passengers filing out of the plane and into the terminal, before a few dozen staff and officials posed for photographs in a brief ceremony on the tarmac. Passengers received red boarding passes and a sumptuous “themed meal” to commemorate the flight, CCTV reported. Other footage showed passengers waving national flags and singing a patriotic song while a cake was being cut during the flight.

The Company’s Future

The aircraft is manufactured by state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), but many of its parts, including its engines, are sourced from overseas. Zhang Xiaoguang, COMAC’s director of marketing and sales, told state news agency Xinhua the flight was a “coming-of-age ceremony (for) the new aircraft,” adding the C919 “will get better if it stands the test of the market.” Zhang Yujin, COMAC’s deputy general manager, told state-backed Shanghai outlet The Paper in January that the company had taken around 1,200 orders for the C919. COMAC planned to increase annual production capacity to 150 models within five years, Zhang said at the time.

The C919’s first homegrown jetliner with mass commercial potential is a significant step in China’s efforts to compete with Western rivals in the air. The aircraft is manufactured by state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), but many of its parts are sourced from overseas, including its engines. However, China’s investment in the production of the homegrown jet shows its determination to become self-sufficient in key technologies. Beijing hopes that the C919 will challenge foreign models like the Boeing 737 MAX and the Airbus A320, and cut the country’s reliance on foreign technology as ties with the West deteriorate.