General Electric Co. (GE) is becoming one of the major overseas beneficiaries of China's home-made aircraft project through close cooperation with the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).

GE AVIC Civil Avionics Systems Co., Ltd., an avionics supplier company between AVIC and GE, was officially established recently, the reporter learnt from AVIC on Oct. 21.

The joint venture will serve to provide top techniques and product solutions for the comprehensive avionics system to be developed in the next-generation commercial aircraft project.

In the past, AVIC had mainly concentrated on the development of military aircraft and lacked experience in avionics configuration for commercial aircraft, according to an insider in domestic aviation industry.

On the other hand, GE has made considerable compromise for the establishment of the joint venture. This is the first time that GE has built an equally-owned company with a Chinese enterprise in the core filed of aviation manufacturing and integrated its avionics segment into the joint venture, while most foreign avionics companies are more likely to take controlling stakes in the joint company due to concerns of protecting core technology and ensuring commercial interests.

In return, however, GE will get a share of the lucrative Chinese market. It's worth noting that, before the contract of the joint venture was signed, the two sides had already worked together to win the deal for parts of the avionics system of the C919. It is learnt that Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), the designer of the domestic plane C919, plans to build and deliver over 2,300 C919 aircraft over the coming two decades, bringing about US$2 billion worth of business opportunity for GE.

What's more, CMF international, a 50-50 joint venture between GE and Safran, was chosen to be the engine supplier of C919. Thus, having seized both avionics and engine, the two most important parts of a plane, GE can be eyed as the largest foreign supplier for the C919.