'Made in China' plane takes off for the first time

Chengdu Airlines recently used an ARJ21 for a flight from Chengdu (Sichuan, China) to Shanghai, with 70 passengers.

This is the first commercial flight of a Chinese-made aircraft, after many years of delays. ARJ21 stands for Advanced Regional Jet for the 21st Century. It will fly the Chengdu-Shanghai route three times a week, a Chengdu Airlines spokesman said.

The flight is the culmination of a 14-year program to produce China's first commercial aircraft to compete with foreign rivals such as Boeing and Airbus.

China's ARJ21 aircraft on a flight yesterday. Photo: AFP

However, the ARJ21 still lacks the crucial certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to fly in US airspace. In addition, most manufacturers do not consider this aircraft from the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) to be a threat.

Plans for the aircraft were first approved by the Chinese government in 2002. Five years later, the ARJ21 was introduced to the press. At the time, officials were confident that the first aircraft would be delivered by the end of 2009.

However, Chengdu Airlines did not receive the plane from COMAC until November last year. In January, they conducted several test flights without passengers.

While this flight is a new milestone for COMAC, the quality and reliability of the ARJ21 still needs to be proven to win the trust of customers and passengers.

The aircraft can seat 78-90 passengers and can fly 2,225-3,700 km. COMAC said it has received more than 270 orders for the ARJ21, mainly from domestic customers.