Witness: The first Chinese-made passenger plane takes off on its first commercial flight.. Compete with the West in the air

The first Chinese-made “C919” passenger plane took off on Sunday on its first commercial flight, marking a quantum leap for China seeking to compete with the West in this field.

Beijing hopes that its “C919” will compete with famous Western models such as “Boeing 737 MAX” and “Airbus A320”.

China has invested heavily in producing this aircraft locally as part of its quest to achieve self-sufficiency in key technologies.

“In the future, most passengers will be able to choose to travel on large, locally manufactured aircraft,” state broadcaster CCTV said.

And the Chinese “Eastern Airlines” flight No. “MU9191” from Shanghai Hongqiao Airport “smoothly” arrived at Beijing Airport shortly after 14:30, 40 minutes ahead of schedule, according to “CCTV”.

Footage showed passengers exiting the plane and entering the terminal, before dozens of employees and officials took pictures at a short party on the runway.

A traveler told the TV channel that the trip “was very smooth, comfortable and memorable”.

Footage broadcast by state media showed dozens of passengers gathering at Shanghai airport, preparing to board the white, narrow-body plane on Sunday morning, which it said would carry 130 passengers.

Other footage showed travelers waving flags and singing patriotic songs when cutting a cake during the flight.

The plane is manufactured by the state-owned Commercial Aviation Corporation of China (COMAC), but many of its components come from outside the country.

Zhang Zhaogang, director of marketing and sales of COMAC, confirmed to Xinhua that the flight was the launch of the C919, which he said would be “improved if it stands the test of the market.”

increase production

From Monday, the C919 will fly between Shanghai and the southwestern city of Chengdu, CCTV reported.

The first C919, which seats 164 passengers, was officially delivered to Eastern Airlines in December.

In January, Zhang Yujin, deputy general manager of COMAC, told the semi-official Chinese newspaper, The Paper, that the company had received more than 1,200 orders for the C919.

Zhang said at the time that COMAC plans to increase its annual production capacity to 150 aircraft within five years.

Asian countries and China in particular are prime targets for European Airbus and its US rival Boeing, which are looking to capitalize on the growing demand for air travel from the Chinese middle class.

Airbus announced last month that it would double its production capacity in China and signed an agreement to build a second final assembly line for the A320 in Tianjin.

The first aircraft assembly site was opened in the city in 2008, and it produces four “A320” aircraft per month, while Airbus hopes to increase that to six aircraft per month by the end of the year.