TapTechNews May 14th news, according to South China Morning Post on the evening of May 13th, after the launch of the narrow-body C919 aircraft, it was reported that Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) has begun the development of C939, a new wide-body jet aircraft that is expected to compete with Boeing and Airbus.
Sources revealed that COMAC has outlined the preliminary design of this new aircraft, although these early concepts will take many years to materialize. A knowledgeable source stated that this is a testable prototype.
At the same time, a second source stated that C929—a long-haul wide-body aircraft also being developed by COMAC—has a design flight range of 12,000 kilometers (7,500 miles), which can be used for international routes and can compete with mainstream rivals such as the Boeing 787 Dreamliner in some aspects.
According to different forecasts by Airbus, Boeing, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), China is expected to surpass the United States to become the world's largest aviation service market in the next few decades, specifically in the 2030s or 2040s.
Jie Yuwen, Deputy Director of the Shanghai Aircraft Airworthiness Certification Center of Civil Aviation Administration of China and leader of the C919 aircraft model certificate approval review group, previously stated that COMAC is carrying out relevant pre-certification work and is expected to submit a type certificate application to the Civil Aviation Administration by the end of the year.
TapTechNews noted that last month, COMAC announced that the C929 project joint development launch meeting was held at COMAC on April 15th. Participating experts were divided into six thematic groups including overall aerodynamics, fuselage structure, composite structure, avionics, mechanical systems, and propulsion systems, and conducted a week-long discussion.
C929 is China's first jet wide-body aircraft independently developed in accordance with international airworthiness standards with independent intellectual property rights. The basic model of C929 has 280 seats and a range of 12,000 kilometers, which can effectively meet the global international and regional air passenger market needs.