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Gateway to Southeast Asia of 'Made in China' aircraft 4
In the journey to find international customers, the first destination outside China of the `Made in China` C919 aircraft is Southeast Asia.
Last month, its appearance at the Singapore Air Show – Asia’s largest aerospace event – signaled that Southeast Asia would be manufacturer COMAC’s first stop on its journey to go global.
COMAC signed two agreements at the show with Chinese airlines for narrow-body C919 aircraft and smaller ARJ21 aircraft.
`We gathered at the Singapore Airshow to witness the large passenger aircraft C919 and ARJ21 flying to the world,` a COMAC representative said at that time.
The C919 aircraft displayed at the Singapore Airshow belongs to China Eastern.
After the Singapore Airshow, the C919 and ARJ21 aircraft performed in 5 Southeast Asian countries including Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia and Indonesia.
The C919 has so far received more than 1,000 orders, but mainly from Chinese airlines and aircraft lessors.
The region is one of the fastest growing aviation markets in the world.
Randy Tinseth, former Vice President of Commercial Marketing at Boeing, assessed that with the expanding middle class, the market continuing to liberalize, along with a strong tourism industry, Southeast Asia has become
Last year, GallopAir, a Brunei-based low-cost airline that has yet to begin flying, signed a plan intending to buy the C919 and ARJ21 for 15 of each.
Meanwhile, the China-Indonesia joint venture TransNusa has begun operating ARJ21.
State-owned China Aircraft Leasing Company (CALC), backed by financial conglomerate China Everbright Group, controls 49% of TransNusa.
In terms of prospects, the C919 has a number of advantages that can attract Southeast Asian airlines.
The C919 has an operating range of about 5,500 km, enough to connect many major cities in Southeast Asia.
However, the challenges that `Made in China` aircraft need to overcome to conquer Southeast Asia are not few.
In addition, the C919 and ARJ21 have been licensed by China but must wait for approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration or the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
Luc Tytgat, Acting Director of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), said he did not know when the C919 would be licensed.
Christian Scherer, CEO of Airbus’s commercial aircraft business, said the C919 `really doesn’t bring any significant specific differentiation to the market`.
Dave Schulte, director of Boeing marketing for Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia predicts Southeast Asia will need 4,200 new aircraft in the next 20 years.
`I think both of us (Boeing and Airbus) will face similar challenges in terms of increased competition in the market,` he said.
According to industry insiders, there are only four C919s in operation in China.
Mike Yeomans, head of valuation at aviation consultancy IBA, said that with Airbus and Boeing’s narrowband A320neo and 737 MAX lines sold out for most of this decade, the C919 has a big opportunity.
`The immediate challenges for COMAC are around production to meet local demand and certification to enter international markets,` he said.