COMAC says Air China is the first customer for C929 widebody jet

ZHUHAI, China (Reuters) -COMAC said on Tuesday that Air China (OTC:AIRYY) was the first customer for the Chinese planemaker’s C929 widebody aircraft under development that is designed to compete with twin-aisle models from Airbus and Boeing (NYSE:BA).

COMAC’s deputy director of marketing, Liu Yan, made the announcement at China’s biggest air show in Zhuhai.

Liu did not disclose the number of aircraft that Beijing-based Air China would purchase or planned delivery dates.

The aircraft maker also announced that Hainan Airlines had placed a firm order for 60 C919 narrowbody and 40 C909 regional jets. Colorful Guizhou Airlines signed a purchase agreement for 30 C909 planes, it added, 20 of which are firm and the remainder provisional.

COMAC has said the C929 will have 280 to 400 seats and a range of 12,000 km (7,500 miles), which is in the same category as Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner.

The C929 was renamed in 2023 from the CR929 after Russia left a China-Russia joint venture developing the aircraft.

A report in April from the C929’s fuselage manufacturer said it aimed to deliver the first fuselage section by September 2027.

COMAC deputy general manager Tong Yu in May told a group of Hong Kong reporters in Shanghai that a C929 prototype will be seen in the near future and estimated the jet could “soon” take a test flight, according to Hong Kong newspaper Tai Kong Pao.