SINGAPORE - The Commercial Aircraft Corp of China's (COMAC) 919 aims to compete with aerospace giants Airbus and Boeing, and China Eastern Airlines flew its single-aisle jet to the Singapore Airshow earlier this month.
The Chinese-made aircraft - which can seat 158 to 168 passengers - is powered by technology from familiar Western faces. CFM International provides the powerplant with its LEAP turbofan - the same engine that gets the A320neo and 737 MAX families into the sky.
Avionics were developed by GE and China's Aviation Industry Systems (AVIC) and Honeywell was awarded a contract to supply auxiliary power units alongside other technologies. Parker Aerospace and AVIC were contracted to provide the aircraft's fly-by-wire flight control actuation, fuel inserting, and hydraulic systems for the aircraft. Finally, Liebherr-Aerospace was awarded a contract to supply the landing gear and air management system.
Related: China's COMAC wants to build an electric passenger aircraft
COMAC is looking to gain a significant foothold in China's booming commercial aviation sector. In September, Arlington, Virginia's The Boeing Company projected that China's commercial airliner fleet will more than double to nearly 9,600 jets over the next 20 years. This is according to Boeing's Commercial Market Outlook, the company's long-term forecast of demand for commercial airplanes and related services.
With its ongoing recovery of air travel, China will account for one-fifth of the world's airplane deliveries in the next two decades, according to the CMO. China's domestic aviation market also will be the largest in the world by the end of the forecast period, helping power demand for 6,470 single-aisle airplanes.
"Domestic air traffic in China has already surpassed pre-pandemic levels and international traffic is recovering steadily," said Darren Hulst, Boeing vice president, Commercial Marketing. "As China's economy and traffic continue to grow, Boeing's complete line-up of commercial jets will play a key role in helping meet that growth sustainably and economically."
