The Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) plans to market its portfolio of twin-engine commercial aircraft in line with Beijing’s two major trade strategies—the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road and the One Belt One Road initiatives.
Comac is responsible for developing the C919 narrowbody airliner and more recently, the widebody CR929, a joint project between China and Russia.
“Outside of China and Russia, we plan to market the aircraft first to Southeast Asia, followed by India and Africa, and even possibly Latin America,” said Lu Zheng, senior engineer, deputy general manager, sales and marketing at Comac. “Currently we have significant level of communications in Southeast Asia.”
He added that the African regional aviation market will be crucial in connecting the various stakeholders to the Maritime Silk Road.
“In the future, we might venture into Central Asia and East Asia,” he said.
The CR292 was unveiled and named on September 29 last year. The venture has since issued a request for proposal for the CR929's two turbofan engines.
Lu said that the manufacturing of the fuselage would likely be carried out in China, the wings by Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation, and the final assembly in Comac’s facility in Shanghai.
“We are working very hard to develop our composite technology and implement it various elements of the CR929, although it is too early to tell how many composite elements will be in the design.”
As for the single-aisle C919, Lu hopes to receive the relevant certifications within three to four years. The second C919 flew in December 2017, and four more test aircraft will follow. He added that Comac and the Chinese government are working hard to attain EASA and FAA certification for the C919, a topic that was brought up during China premier Xi Jingping’s visit to Germany.
Comac aims to expand its assembly facility and deliver 150 aircraft annually once the C919 is fully certified for commercial operation.
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