China's first passenger jet to be unveiled
21 December 2007
China will introduce its first passenger jet today, Bloomberg reported. China Aviation Industry Corp I (AVIC I) will showcase its ARJ21 regional jet, which was developed at a cost of US$1.1 billion, at an aircraft factory in Shanghai today. The 70-to-90 seater jet will be test-flown in March and delivered to the first customer in the third quarter of 2009. The firm aims to get 80 orders for the US$34 million jet by the end of December. The order book already includes 73 orders from clients like Shandong Airlines, Shanghai Airlines and the government of Laos. China is the world's fastest-growing aviation market, with 3,400 new planes needed in the next 20 years. Chinese officials are working on getting the ARJ21 certified abroad by working with the US Federal Aviation Administration. China's last attempt to make a passenger plane was in the 1970s, when it produced the Y-10, a 150-seat, four-engine plane, which never flew a commercial flight.
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