Chinese aircraft manufacturer COMAC, seeking to establish its presence across Asia, has offered its C919 aircraft to airlines in Cambodia (Angkor Air), Indonesia (Garuda Indonesia) and Kazakhstan (SCAT Airlines). With the aircraft, COMAC plans to compete with the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX 8 and aims to secure more orders for the narrow-body aircraft outside China.
The first, and currently only, contract for COMAC’s C919 aircraft outside China was signed in September 2023 with the new airline Gallop Air of Brunei. In addition to the 15 C919 aircraft, 15 ARJ21 (C909) aircraft were also ordered. Gallop Air launched its first commercial operations with a charter flight on December 31, 2024, operated by a China Southern Airlines C909 aircraft.
The advantage that potential buyers of COMAC’s C919 aircraft could have would be a significantly shorter delivery time compared to the fact that Airbus and Boeing are struggling with their supply chains and their orders are being delayed for a long time.
However, due to geopolitical developments and the potential imposition of trade restrictions, COMAC could have problems with the availability of aircraft parts from the West, which could consequently significantly slow down, or even stop, their C919 production. Also, due to the development of COMAC’s support network, the availability of pilot and cabin crew training centers, as well as the maintenance network and the availability of replacement parts, potential buyers could be skeptical or even concerned.
From December 2022 to date, COMAC has delivered a total of 16 C919 aircraft. The largest number, 11, was delivered to China Eastern Airlines, three were delivered to China Southern Airlines, and two to Air China. This makes for a relatively low and slow production rate in the two years since the delivery of the first aircraft of the said type.
