BEIJING, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- China's homegrown C919 aircraft completed its first scheduled international commercial passenger flight on Wednesday with a safe landing in Mongolia's capital city Ulaanbaatar after take-off from Beijing, marking a new chapter for Chinese-made large passenger aircraft going global.
Air China flight CA723 using the C919 plane took off from the Beijing Capital International Airport for Ulaanbaatar at around 3 p.m. Wednesday, the milestone operation coming after its maiden commercial flight on May 28, 2023.
After a flight of one hour and 41 minutes, the plane safely landed in Ulaanbaatar. A grand water salute ceremony was held at the airport. Passengers gradually disembarked from the aircraft, watched a unique ethnic dance performance, and were greeted by a procession of attendants dressed in traditional Mongolian attire.
According to available information, the international route connecting the two cities is operated under flight numbers CA723/CA724, with daily scheduled flights as a regular service.
The operation of this flight on the China-Mongolia international route demonstrates that the C919 has successfully passed the verification of bilateral international civil aviation operating standards, thereby officially acquiring the qualification for regular international commercial passenger operations.
Analysts say the C919's first scheduled international commercial passenger flight has marked a starting point for China's domestically developed large passenger aircraft to gain global recognition. They believe that with the rise in cross-border routes using C919 aircraft and the accumulation of overseas operational data, the global civil aviation sector's trust in China's large passenger aircraft will grow.
Tian Linchuan, assistant researcher at the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, said that the ability to stably operate cross-border scheduled flights fully demonstrates that the C919 has reached the advanced level of its international counterparts in terms of safety, reliability and cost-effectiveness.
Tian told the Science and Technology Daily publication he believes this will establish a replicable set of international operational standards and accumulate practical experience for future route expansions into Southeast Asia and Central Asia.
The C919 is China's first self-developed trunk jetliner in accordance with international airworthiness standards and registered with independent intellectual property rights.
The C919 has been successfully operated on multiple domestic routes since entering commercial service. It has gained widespread market recognition due to its reliable flight performance, comfortable cabin experience, and stable safety standards.
Air China currently operates 12 of these aircraft. The C919 jet is also operated by China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines.
As of Aug. 10, the C919 had served 57 routes linking 25 cities and handled more than 7.5 million passenger trips, said the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), the jet developer. With the launch of this latest route connecting Beijing and Ulaanbaatar on Wednesday, total routes served by C919 reach 58 and the number of linked cities rise to 26.
A report in the Science and Technology Daily said years of smooth domestic operations have served as a solid foundation for the C919's international operations, noting that the steadily rising production capacity of C919 planes also supports their operation in overseas markets.
COMAC has set a target of reaching an annual production capacity of 200 aircraft by 2029. Enditem
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