China Rolls Out First Large Passenger Jet (VIDEO)

This is interesting, at WSJ:

BEIJING—China’s first large passenger jet rolled off the assembly line on Monday after years of delays, bringing Beijing’s dream of developing a rival to Boeing Co. and Airbus Group SE closer to reality.

Still, the single-aisle C919 airliner won’t be delivered to airlines for at least another three years, highlighting the difficulties China has faced in becoming a global player in aviation.

Developed by state-run Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China Ltd., or Comac, the twin-engine jet was initially set for its first flight in 2014, ahead of commercial deliveries starting in 2016. Production setbacks forced Comac to repeatedly extend its deadlines. Company executives say flight testing should start next year, with deliveries expected in 2018 or 2019 at the earliest.

Comac hasn’t disclosed list prices for the C919.

Thousands of guests, including government officials and aerospace executives, witnessed the C919’s rollout at an assembly plant near Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport, according to Chinese state media.

As patriotic songs blared in a large hangar, the C919 prototype—decked out with white, blue and green Comac livery—emerged from behind red curtains under a banner that proclaimed “Dreams take flight” in Chinese, footage aired by state broadcaster China Central Television showed. The jet was then towed past guests before slowing to a stop just outside the hangar.

The 158-to-174 seater, designed in Shanghai but incorporating components sourced globally, relies on foreign technology, including avionics from Rockwell Collins Inc. and engines developed by CFM International, a joint venture between General Electric Co. and the Snecma engine unit of France’s Safran SA. The jet is expected to undergo ground and flight tests spanning two to three years, before attaining certification from China’s civil-aviation regulator and entering commercial service.

China unveiled plans to develop the C919 in 2006 as part of a decadeslong effort to create an advanced aerospace sector capable of breaking the Airbus and Boeing duopoly. Coming after an abortive effort in the 1970s and early 1980s to develop a large commercial jetliner, the C919 was meant to help satisfy growing air-travel demand on the mainland, competing with the likes of Airbus’s A320 family and Boeing’s 737 series.

Airbus and Boeing, in separate emailed statements, congratulated Comac and welcomed competition from the Chinese aerospace firm, saying the aviation market is large enough to accommodate an additional manufacturer.

Airbus and Boeing, for their part, are seeking to shore up their market shares in China by building up an industrial footprint on the mainland, and developing new aircraft that can outperform coming Chinese rivals. Airbus assembles some A320s in the northeastern city of Tianjin, while Boeing in December announced plans for a 737 completion-and-delivery center in China, where aircraft will be painted and interiors installed.

Both companies also plan to widen the number of jets they make using carbon-fiber composite materials, which are lighter and considered more efficient. Boeing Chairman Jim McNerney said last year that Boeing was considering a new composite-materials aircraft that would replace its 737 Max in part because of potential competition from the C919...

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