China’s homegrown C919 narrow-body aircraft , designed to challenge the Airbus-Boeing duopoly, is inching closer to certification as its test planes complete all of the test flight tasks.

The six prototypes are sending signals of readiness!

The state-owned manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) said that the six test aircraft have finished the testing tasks as the programme enters the final stage of receiving a certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China, which is required for commercial operations.

The C919 is a narrow-body airliner developed by Chinese aircraft manufacturer Comac. The development program began in 2008, with production of the first prototype in December 2011, and this aircraft was ready on 2 November 2015. High-speed taxi tests were completed in April 2017, and the C919 took its first flight on 5 May 2017.

The aircraft is primarily constructed of aluminium alloys, and customers can chose one of two engine choices from either the CFM International LEAP or ACAE CJ-1000A turbofan engines.

Comac reports that the aircraft (B-001J, MSN107) successfully completed a 3-hour test session on 14 May 2022. This aircraft bears the livery of the Chinese company OTT Airlines, a subsidiary of China Eastern, and is set to be delivered this year with major deliveries starting from 2023 to other customers.

The C919 is able to carry 156 to 168 passengers in a normal operating configuration up to 5,555 km (3000 n/miles). 

As Of July 23^rd, Comac has so far secured commitments for 815 of the type from 28 customers worldwide.

Comac’s break away from seeking the co-operation of the US Federal Aviation Administration, and the manufacturer’s ambition for the jet to not be constrained by China’s borders, shows China’s determination to be a stand-alone player. With this said, the manufacturer has still teamed up Western manufacturers from Germany, France and Canada, namely Bombardier Aerospace, to bring the aircraft to fruition.

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is intended to validate the Chinese type certificate.

Comac has also been in the news due to a report from cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike and the US Justice Department. Apparently between 2010 to 2015 the Chinese cyberthreat actor Turbine Panda, linked to the Ministry of State Security’s Jiangsu Bureau, penetrated a number of the C919’s foreign components manufacturers and stole intellectual property and industrial processes data with the aim of transitioning component manufacturing to Chinese companies.

The report stated that the operations involved both cyber intrusion and theft as well as Human Intelligence operations, in most cases using a piece of customcode. So far four people have been arrested in the US as a result of investigation into economic espionage and theft of trade secrets.

The visit of Nancy Pelosi to The Republic of Taiwan over the last couple of days has angered China, and it remains to be seen whether the Chinese will add further boycotts to US linked companies. As it is, the Chinese refuse to allow the Boeing B737 Max to fly in their skies.