The Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) said that the domestically produced C919 jet has completed all the test flights needed to obtain an airworthiness certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), marking another milestone in the rapid development of China's first homegrown passenger jet. On July 23, Comac said that its C919 jet was nearing certification as its test planes had completed all required trial flights. There are three certificates required for the delivery of an aircraft in China. One is a type certificate, which indicates that the model design of the aircraft meets requirements; the second is a production certification, which indicates that the manufacturing of the aircraft meets national standards; the third is an individual aircraft certificate, indicating that each plane delivered to airlines complies with requirements. These certificates are all given by the CAAC.
The announcement confirms that COMAC has submitted the test results to CAAC and is waiting for approval of a CAAC type certificate, according to Lin Zhijie, an independent market watcher. After COMAC gets the type certificate, the C919 plane is likely to receive the other two certificates in a short time, Lin added. Wang Ya'nan, Chief Editor of Beijing-based Aerospace Knowledge magazine, told the Global Times in an earlier interview that after obtaining the airworthiness certificate, COMAC is expected to conduct demonstration flights on commercial routes and provide technical training for pilots and relevant personnel, which may take six to 12 months. “Ideally, the C919 is expected to be put into commercial operation in 2023 if everything goes smoothly,” Wang said.
First approved for development in 2006, the C919 is challenging the Airbus-Boeing duopoly in certain segments of the civil aviation industry. However, market watchers said that it's too early to say if a new plane can challenge the duopoly. “Our current job is to build the plane, and make it fly safely and reliably,” Lin said, adding it will take about 20 years to see if the plane can compete with Airbus and Boeing. Market observers said that there are two advantages for C919 m – one is price, and the second is after-sale services. The aircraft's price tag will be lower than that of comparable Boeing and Airbus aircraft, and it will be exempt from import duties. Also, the production and service teams will be based in China, which will be convenient for Chinese airlines.
The C919, China's first self-developed trunk jetliner has 158 to 168 seats and a range of 4,075 to 5,555 kilometers. The plane conducted its successful maiden flight in 2017. To date, COMAC has received 815 orders for the C919 from 28 customers worldwide, the Global Times reports.
