Emma Kelly / Singapore
COMAC’s C919 made its international debut at the Singapore Air Show this week, with the Chinese manufacturer announcing an order for the narrowbody from Chinese carrier Tibet Airlines. COMAC has its sights on international orders from the Asia-Pacific region, however, with a strong presence at the show.
Tibet Airlines ordered 40 of the new plateau variant of the C919, in addition to 10 plateau versions of the smaller ARJ21 aircraft. The C919 plateau version features a shortened fuselage, with 140-160 seating capacity, down from the 158-192 seat capacity of the standard version, and high-altitude modifications to meet the requirements of high-altitude regions.
COMAC brought a China Eastern Airlines C919 to the show, in addition to an ARJ21 from Indonesian carrier TransNusa and an ARJ21 converted freighter from China Central Longhao Airlines.
The C919 entered service with China Eastern Airlines last May. The airline has four of the type in service, carrying more than 110,000 passengers. The manufacturer said it has 1,061 orders for the type from Chinese carriers but said it is also focused on the international market. It has established an office in Southeast Asia in order to “better serve Southeast Asian carriers” and is looking to set up a maintenance network and training bases in the region.
COMAC also announced at the show an agreement with Henan Civil Aviation Development and Investment Group for six ARJ21 variants, including a firefighting version, a medical service jet and an emergency management jet. Some 127 78-97-seat ARJ21s have been delivered to date, including two operated by TransNusa on services from Jakarta.
Airbus and Boeing don’t appear troubled by potential competition from the C919. Airlines around the region will look at the C919, said Boeing Commercial Marketing Managing Director for Asia-Pacific Dave Schulte, but he was confident that the Boeing 737 family, providing options for an airline to grow through the family members and commonality, appealed to customers in the region. COMAC will face challenges in the international market, he said, pointing to support issues. Airbus Commercial CEO Christian Scherer said in a briefing that the C919 is “not going to rock the boat in a significant way”.
Image credit: Emma Kelly / via Singapore Air Show
