C919 narrowbody jet to make its first public appearance at China air show

[November 05, 2022]  SHENZHEN, China (Reuters) -The C919 narrowbody jet will join the opening flight display in China's biggest air show in the southern city of Zhuhai on Tuesday, according to a schedule posted by the organisers, in what will be its first public flight or display.   

The fifth prototype of China's home-built C919 passenger plane takes off for its first test flight from Shanghai Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, China October 24, 2019. Picture taken October 24, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer

The C919, made by Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), is designed to rival single-aisle jets made by Airbus SE and Boeing Co has never been displayed or publicly flown.

China will show off its home-grown civil and military aviation technology at the air show, where 740 businesses are expected to take part both online and offline.

The C919's presence was confirmed on the schedule on the organiser's official WeChat social media account. It will make a 15-minute flying show for each of the six days of the airshow.

At the end of September, COMAC held a certification ceremony for the C919, which can now be delivered to its first customer, China Eastern Airlines Corp, although it now needs a separate production certificate before it can ramp up mass production.

Also scheduled to appear are China's domestically developed AG600, the world's largest amphibious aircraft, as well as the Y20 military transport aircraft.

(Reporting by David Kirton; Editing by William Mallard)

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