At the "Singapore Airshow" aviation show (20-25 February) the Chinese state aircraft manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) managed to overshadow the big names in the sector, the European Airbus and the American Boeing. This, thanks in particular to the international debut of the C-919 aircraft which aims to obtain certifications and orders from abroad. For this reason the two rival manufacturers still dominate the orders.

During the "Singapore Airshow" the Vietnamese company Vietjet ordered 20 A-330neo aircraft, while the Taiwanese Starlux Airlines bought five A-350F cargo aircraft and three A-330neo (see AVIONEWS). These are markets where the C-919 cannot currently fly due to lack of certifications. But Comac can console itself with the 100 aircraft commissioned in December 2023 by China Eastern Airlines for 10 billion dollars.

During the Singapore show, the Chinese manufacturer reiterated to all the foreign delegations present at its stands (sector professionals, governments, investors) that its C-919 will be "a new reliable choice". An important premise in a period in which we talk about nothing but safety problems on the B-737 MAX family models.

"In general I welcome the presence of Comac at the show", a company which had sent a large delegation to visit the Philippines to present its C-919 in recent months. "I would rather it be a three-way race, not a two-way race” (that is Boeing and Airbus), said Michael Szucs, chief executive of Philippine low-cost Cebu Pacific. 

On the same topic, see also the article published by AVIONEWS.