January 2009: Comac to develop C919
Comac announces it will develop the C919 narrow-body passenger jet. State media reports the C919 is expected to have its maiden flight in 2014 and will be delivered to airlines in 2016.
September 2009: Comac unveils C919
Comac unveils a model of the C919 aircraft for the first time at the Asian Aerospace Expo in Hong Kong.
A model of a commercial C919 jumbo jet is displayed at the Asian Aerospace International Expo in Hong Kong in September 2009. Photo: AP
December 2009: Comac confirms C919 engine supplier
CFM International, a joint venture between GE Aviation from the United States and France’s Safran Aircraft Engines, is selected by Comac to supply the LEAP engine to the C919.
December 2010: CAAC accepts application for C919 type certificate
The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) accepts Comac’s application for a type certificate – the airworthiness of an aircraft design – for the C919.
Technicians install rivets on fuselage of C919 airliner in the assembly base of the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China in Shanghai in September 2014. Photo: Xinhua
May 2015: C919 delays
Reuters reports that the C919 would have to delay its maiden flight for a year and that it will also have to postpone its first delivery for two years.
July 2015: First C919 engine delivered
CFM International delivers the first LEAP engine for the C919 in Shanghai.
November 2015: Comac unveils C919
Comac unveils the C919 for the first time in a ceremony attended by some 4,000 government officials and guests at a hangar near Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport.
C919 passenger jet takes off on its first flight at Pudong International Airport in Shanghai in May 2017. Photo: Reuters
October 2017: FAA and CAAC agree to recognise regulatory systems
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and CAAC agree to recognise each other’s regulatory systems with respect to the airworthiness of aviation products and articles.
