An ARJ21-700 passenger plane is parked on the tarmac at the Dachang Airbase in Shanghai. The aircraft was delivered to Chengdu Airlines yesterday.(Dong Jun)
The second domestically made regional passenger jet took off from Shanghai yesterday after being delivered to Chengdu Airlines.
The twin-engine ARJ21-700 took off from the Dachang Airbase in Baoshan District at 1:40pm and arrived at the southwestern Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport at 4:20pm.
Passengers on board the ARJ21 aircraft included senior officials from its manufacturer, the Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), and the airline. The ARJ21 has 78 seats, including eight first-class seats incorporated for the first time.
"COMAC has begun applying for the Production Certificate to the Civil Aviation Administration of China for mass production of the aircraft," said Yu Zemin, deputy general manager of COMAC Shanghai Aircraft Design and Research Institute where the aircraft was assembled.
The institute will assemble another seven ARJ21s this year for the Chengdu Airlines, and hopes to manufacture 25 ARJ21s annually by 2020, Yu said.
The first 90-seater ARJ21 — all with economy configuration — was delivered to the airline on June 28. It has already recorded more than 200 hours on 70 flights mainly between Shanghai and Chengdu.
