Chinese-Made Large Passenger Aircraft C919 Plans Maiden Flight in First Half
By Lena Ge, China Aviation Daily | Feb. 06, 2017
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After facing several delays in its manufacturing, China's state-owned aerospace manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) is all set to make maiden test flight of its narrow-body aircraft C919 in the first half of this year, the People's Daily reported Monday.
The Shanghai-based airframer has almost completed the onboard systems installation as well as major static and system integration tests since it was built on Nov. 2, 2015.
"COMAC is working round the clock, the February target is challenging but realistic... major experiments before the debut flight had already been completed."
The static test simulates the pressure of flight on the aircraft.
"We tested the whole aircraft, its key components and connecting parts," said Li Qiang, an expert at the Design and Research Center of COMAC.
In early November, COMAC ran the CFM International Leap-1C engines on the C919 for the first time. The engine was also certificated by the European Aviation Safety Agency and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration last week.
On December 25, 2016, the C919 prototype was moved to the trial flight center.
The aircraft 101 conducted its first low-speed taxi test on December 28, and that the jet has reached a state where it is fully preparing for its first flight.
Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines will become the first customer to take delivery of the C919, the Chinese airframer said during this year's Zhuhai airshow.
So far, COMAC has received 570 orders for the C919 from 23 customers, including Air China and China Southern Airlines.
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COMAC Aims for C919 First Flight in February 2017