Passengers board a Chinese C919 aircraft for a demonstration fl ight at Wattay International Airport in Vientiane.(PHOTO:Vientiane Times)

By Vientiane Times

C919 and ARJ21 aircraft manufactured by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) arrived at Wattay International Airport on Sunday in order to give demonstration flights from Vientiane to Luang Prabang on Monday.

The demonstration flights are among several being carried out in Southeast Asia by COMAC, which is also providing flights in Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia and Indonesia in the coming weeks.

The purpose of the exercise is to demonstrate the aircrafts’ adaptability to airports and routes in these five countries, assess the adaptability of airport ground service equipment, evaluate the adaptability of special flight procedures, and demonstrate the economic viability of these routes.

The demonstration flights showcase the performance quality of the ARJ21 and C919 aircraft and lay the foundations for future market development in Southeast Asia.

To better serve Southeast Asian customers, COMAC has established a representative office in Southeast Asia and set up a regional warehouse in Guangzhou. Leveraging customers’ own Maintenance, Repair, and Operations systems, COMAC is constructing a maintenance network, and simultaneously planning training bases in proximity, aiming to provide high-quality services to customers in Southeast Asia and around the globe.

According to COMAC’s latest market forecasts, the demand for passenger aircraft in the Asia-Pacific market in the next two decades will increase from 3,314 to 9,701. The company has begun preparing to tap into the market.

The C919 is a large aircraft that can seat 158 to 192 people and has a range of 4,075 to 5,555 kilometres. The ARJ21 is a smaller aircraft that can seat 78 to 97 people and has a range of 2,225 to 3,700 kilometres.

The Director General of Lao Airlines, Mr Khamla Phommavanh, said he was impressed by COMAC’s presentation and the quality of the aircraft, which demonstrated safety, size, design and various facilities that meet international standards.

According to COMAC, since the ARJ21 aircraft was commissioned for commercial operation in June 2016, some 127 of these planes have been delivered, safely transporting more than 11 million passengers.

Currently, two ARJ21 aircraft operated by the Indonesian airline TransNusa fly on four routes linking Jakarta with other cities, safely carrying more than 100,000 passengers.

Since the C919 aircraft made its commercial debut on May 28, 2023, COMAC has delivered five jets to the airline company China Eastern, operating round-trip flights from Shanghai to Beijing and from Shanghai to Chengdu, carrying more than 130,000 passengers.