COMAC delivered the 3rd C919 jet to China Eastern Airlines on Saturday, December 9th.
The aircraft registration number B-919D had made its maiden flight two months ago and had been prepared for delivery since then.
According to local media, the C919 took off from Shanghai Pudong International Airport at 9:53 am and landed at Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, where China Eastern’s facilities are located, shortly after.
The delivery of the 3rd C919 took place exactly one year after the delivery ceremony of the first aircraft of the type. The commercial aircraft, however, only effectively entered service on May 28, after a long period of familiarization flights.
China Eastern received its second C919 shortly thereafter in July and placed it into service in August.
Despite the five-month hiatus without deliveries, the C919 program should enter a new phase, as COMAC makes the final adjustments to production.
The aircraft’s launch customer, China Eastern, has an initial order for five C919s, but closed a much larger deal, for 100 aircraft, in September.
In addition to the two C919s pending from the first order, COMAC will deliver five aircraft in 2024, 10 jets per year between 2025 and 2027, 15 aircraft per year between 2028 and 2030 and 20 C919s in 2031.
The C919 is configured with two classes and 164 seats on China Eastern Airlines, and will be a local alternative to the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737.
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The plan is for the aircraft to respond to the largest demand for single-aisle aircraft in China and for this purpose, COMAC is already planning a family of jets, with a short version with 140 seats and high-altitude operating capacity, and an elongated one, with around of 210 seats.
