Beijing/Sydney: China held a ceremony on Thursday to certify its C919 narrowbody passenger jet, photos on social media showed, representing a major milestone in the country's ambitions to challenge Airbus and Boeing in commercial aerospace.
The plane, produced by state-owned manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), had been widely expected to be certified by the end of the month after two aircraft flew to Beijing on Sept. 13. A sign in one of the photos said "C919 aircraft type certificate issuance ceremony" in Chinese.
COMAC did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
The C919, launched 14 years ago and designed to carry up to 168 passengers, will compete against the popular Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX families in the world's second-biggest aviation market as China looks to boost its technological self-reliance amid trade tensions.
Although the plane is assembled in China, it relies heavily on Western components, including engines and avionics, from companies including GE, Safran and Honeywell International.
Tough US export licensing rules have led to delays in sourcing parts and remain a key risk to ramped up production until China replaces foreign engines and components with homegrown technology.
Richard Aboulafia, U.S.-based managing director of AeroDynamic Advisory, said the plane seems like a relic of a bygone era of increasing integration between China and the West.
"Thus, we have an aircraft that is only superficially Chinese but is actually powered by Western technologies and systems," he said. "Turning it into a genuine Chinese aircraft would take well over a decade and many billions of dollars."
The type of certificate granted on Thursday means it can be delivered to the first customer, China Eastern Airlines Corp Ltd , though local media have reported the plane is unlikely to enter commercial service with passengers until next year.
The C919 has never made an appearance at the country's premier aviation event, Airshow China and it is unclear whether it will be on display or flown at the show in November.
COMAC will also need a separate production certificate before it can ramp up mass production of the plane, meaning its impact on the global aircraft market could remain limited given Airbus and Boeing produce dozens of narrowbodies a month.
"The C919 will gradually begin to replace single-aisle aircraft made by Boeing and Airbus," in China, a research note by Huaxi Securities said this month. "In the next 20 years, China's demand for narrowbody passenger aircraft like the C919 will be on average 300 per year." The C919's regional jet predecessor, the ARJ21, faced a 2.5-year gap between obtaining the type certificate and the production certificate, slowing production. That contrasts with the West, where both certificates are typically granted around the same time.
Foreign certification
Like the ARJ21, the C919 lacks certification validation by U.S. and European regulators, limiting flights to the domestic market and possibly countries with close ties to China.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has been working for years on a certification validation process on the C919 with COMAC in parallel to CAAC's work, an EASA spokesperson said.
"We cannot comment on the date when this validation would be completed," the spokesperson said.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration did not respond to a request for comment on a potential C919 certification validation.
There have been 815 orders for the C919 from 28 customers, according to COMAC's website. But China Eastern is the only customer that has announced a firm delivery schedule and it expects to receive only four next year.
In the meantime, the Boeing 737 MAX has yet to return to commercial service in China, having been grounded since March 2019 after two fatal crashes.
However, three months ago major Chinese airlines placed an order for nearly 300 Airbus A320neo family planes, showing the country plans to continue imports for some time.
Aboulafia said if China did decide to halt Western aircraft imports, the United States and allied countries could kill the C919 for years by prohibiting component exports.
"Try building an aircraft without an engine, or avionics," he said. "It would just be a metal shell."
China's C919 narrowbody jet: from drawing board to certification
China's long-awaited C919 narrowbody jet was certified by the country's aviation regulator on Thursday, photos showed, representing a milestone in its ambitions to challenge the Western duopoly of Airbus and Boeing in commercial aerospace.
These are key events in the run-up to the jet's certification to pave the way for future commercial operations.
May 2008:
China establishes Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) in Shanghai and announces plans to produce its first large commercial jetliner, which it calls the C919.
April 2009:
COMAC finishes the C919's initial design and says it aims to send the jet on its maiden flight in 2014, according to the state-owned Beijing News.
Sept. 2009:
COMAC unveils a model of the C919 aircraft for the first time at the Asian Aerospace Expo in Hong Kong.
Nov. 2010:
China announces the C919 has received its first order - a deal for 100 planes to several Chinese and international customers.
Oct. 2013:
Local media reports the C919's first flight will be delayed by a year until 2015, pushing first delivery dates to around 2017 or 2018.
May 2014:
Chinese President Xi Jinping visits COMAC's offices and says large jets are a reflection of China's national capabilities and urges the development of a competitive aviation industry.
Feb. 2015:
Xinhua reports COMAC has completed the basic assembly of its medium-range C919 large passenger aircraft and will launch test flights that year.
July 2015:
COMAC delays the C919's maiden flight which was scheduled to fly by end-2015.
Nov. 2015:
COMAC unveils the C919 in public for the first time in a roll-out ceremony broadcast over state media.
March 2017:
Xinhua news agency reports the C919 is ready for take-off.
May 2017:
The jet makes its maiden flight on May 5.
Dec. 2017:
COMAC says the second jet completed its first flight.
March 2021:
China Eastern Airlines signs a contact with COMAC for the purchase of five C919 jets.
Dec. 2021:
China's aviation regulator says a huge amount of testing work was still needed before the C919 could be certified, meaning the certification - once expected by the end of 2020 - would again be delayed.
Aug. 2022:
COMAC says the C919 completed all test flight tasks.
Sept. 2022:
China Eastern said it expects to receive one C919 this year, down from three forecast previously.
