Latest news with #LiHanming
South China Morning Post
14-03-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Vietnam boosts China's aviation ambitions with C909 deal move
Vietnam is moving towards approving the country's first purchases of Chinese-made regional passenger aircraft, in a boost for China's efforts to expand the overseas market for its home-grown jets. Advertisement The Vietnamese deputy prime minister, Tran Hong Ha, has ordered the country's Ministry of Transport to propose legal changes that would 'facilitate the certification' of the C909 narrowbody jet, the state-run news website VietnamNet reported on Thursday. Budget airline VietJet Air has previously expressed interest in leasing the C909, which is produced by the Shanghai-based Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) and was formerly known as the ARJ21, according to VietnamNet. An agreement to let C909s fly and operate in Vietnam would advance Comac's ambitions to expand the use of its passenger jets – including the larger C919 – beyond China's borders. China's top economic planning body, the National Development and Reform Commission, said last week that it planned to accelerate the overseas expansion of the C909 this year. Advertisement Comac sees the pending Vietnam orders as a milestone, aviation analyst Li Hanming said. 'Comac needs overseas clients to prove itself to the world, especially regulatory authorities, so every foreign client helps,' he said. A team from the Vietnamese Civil Aviation Authority visited Comac in January to 'survey and learn about' the C909, according to the authority's website.
South China Morning Post
24-02-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China's C919 jet passes Lunar New Year test as usage rate soars
China's first home-grown narrowbody aircraft, the C919, has taken another step towards proving its reliability, after handling a surge in flights during the Lunar New Year travel rush. Advertisement The big three Chinese state-owned airlines used their C919 fleets more intensively than ever before, with each C919 staying in the air for an average of 6.5 hours per day over the 40-day holiday period. Though the airlines deployed their Airbus and Boeing aircraft even more, the holiday still represented a test for the C919, as its utilisation rate soared by 40 per cent compared with the same period last year. 'The C919 demonstrated its reliability as a daily-use aircraft, and there are no significant weaknesses when compared with Airbus and Boeing,' said Li Hanming, a civil aviation analyst. The Lunar New Year travel period, which ended on Saturday, brings a dramatic spike in travel demand each year as families across China reunite with their relatives. Advertisement Demand for air travel reached a record high during this year's holiday, with the country's airlines handling 2.25 million passenger trips per day on average, up 7.4 per cent compared with the 2024 holiday, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
