Aircraft manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) has delivered the fifth C919 narrow-body airliner to China Eastern Airlines.
The Chinese state-owned manufacturer delivered the aircraft, registered as B-919F, ferrying it from Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG) to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (SHA) on March 2, 2024, as reported by China Daily. The two-month-old aircraft, soon to launch passenger services, features a two-class cabin layout accommodating up to 164 passengers.
The B919F marks the final delivery of the initial batch of five C919 aircraft ordered by China Eastern Airlines in 2021. The carrier had previously received four deliveries: the B-919A, B919C, B919D, and B919E.
China Eastern Airlines introduced the inaugural C919 to its fleet on December 8, 2022, with the second aircraft delivered in July and commencing passenger service in August 2023. The carrier received its third and fourth domestically produced single-aisle passenger jets on December 9, 2023, and January 2, 2024, respectively.
All four aircraft are already operating scheduled passenger flights connecting Shanghai (SHA) and Chengdu (CTU), as indicated by flight history on Flightradar24.com.
In September 2023, China Eastern Airlines made headlines with a groundbreaking almost $10 billion-worth deal with COMAC, placing a substantial order of 100 C919 aircraft. The deal holds the record for the largest single order for C919 narrow-body jets so far.
Per the terms of the agreement with the manufacturer, the Chinese carrier expects to receive up to ten C919s annually between 2025 and 2027. The delivery rate is projected to increase to 15 aircraft per year from 2028 to 2030, reaching its pinnacle with 20 C919s in 2031.
China’s C919 program was officially launched in 2009, with the first aircraft rolling off the assembly line in 2015. Positioned as a competitor to narrow-body single-aisle planes such as the Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A320neo, the C919 received its type certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) on September 29, 2022.
According to COMAC, the C919 stands as the first jetliner entirely developed by a Chinese entity “in accordance with internationally accepted airworthiness standards” and “with independent intellectual property rights.” The manufacturer claims the jet can accommodate between 158 and 168 passengers, offering a range spanning between 4,075 and 5,555 kilometers.
As of January 31, 2024, the C919 had conducted 918 commercial flights, carrying nearly 116,000 passengers in total.