China set up a company to make jumbo passenger aircrafts to challenge the dominance of commercial jet giants Airbus and Boeing, in the market for aircrafts with more than 150 seats.
BEIJING: China on Sunday set up a homegrown company to make jumbo passenger aircrafts to challenge the dominance of commercial jet giants Airbus and Boeing, in the market for aircrafts with more than 150 seats.
Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China Ltd (CACC) was unveiled with a registered capital of 19 billion Yuan ($ 2.7 billion), with state-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission alone investing 6 billion Yuan, making it the biggest shareholder in the outfit.
The company would be responsible for researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing the homegrown large passenger aircraft, official Xinhua news agency said.
China's two aircraft makers China Aviation Industry Corporation 1 (AVIC 1) and China Aviation Industry Corporation II (AVIC II) are also shareholders in the company.
"It is too early to set a timetable or make development strategy," the company's General Manager Jin Zhuanglong said, adding, "It will take a long time for the company to train talents and do research".
He said China would make use of "worldwide resources" to develop the aircraft, and would welcome cooperation from foreign companies.
China's first indigenous 90-seat regional jet ARJ21-700 was unveiled in December last year and it is expected to make its maiden flight later this year.
Shanghai Aircraft Manufacturing Factory and the First Aircraft Institute of AVIC, which contributed to the ARJ21-700 project, have also joined the newly established CACC.
The State Council and the cabinet, gave the green signal for setting up of the company in February last year in an initiative to make the country capable of building aircrafts with a take-off weight of more than 100 tonnes, or planes with more than 150 seats.
Zhang Qingwei has been appointed the board chairman of the newly set up outfit.
Jin Qiansheng, head of the management committee of Yanliang State High-tech Aviation Industry Base, however, said China's jumbo jet programme would not pose a threat to Boeing and Airbus at least in the coming 20 years.
"Even if China built its own production capacity of large jets, it would be able to meet quite a small part of the domestic demand. Boeing and Airbus will continue to claim the majority of the Chinese market," he said.
Yanliang base, located in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi province, is home to Xi'an Aircraft Industry (Group) Co Ltd.
Jin Qiansheng was quoted by Xinhua as saying that the Xi'an Aircraft industry company under AVIC 1 would be a major large parts manufacturer for the large passenger jet project.
China, he said, was willing to cooperate with foreign companies to develop large passenger jets.
Zhang said in the process of CACC's formation, China received "support" from Boeing, Airbus, GE, Honeywell and Bombardier.
Jin Qiansheng said about 3,000 to 5,000 non-state businesses would be involved in the large jet project.
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