China’s answer to Boeing and Airbus makes first international flight
A Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (Comac) C919 aircraft under assembly at the Comac Shanghai Research and Development Center on May 4, 2017.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
China’s homegrown C919 passenger jet departed on its first scheduled international commercial flight Wednesday, marking a milestone in Beijing’s push to develop an alternative to Boeing and Airbus.
The Air China-operated jet took off from Beijing Capital International Airport bound for Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, just after 3:00 p.m. local time (3:00 a.m. ET), touching down some two hours later, according to FlightRadar24. It marks the first time the narrow-body aircraft has operated beyond Chinese territory.
The Beijing-Ulaanbaatar service is set to operate daily, according to Air China.
The flight marks another step in China’s effort to establish the state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, or COMAC, as a competitor in a global passenger aircraft market dominated by U.S.-based Boeing and Europe’s Airbus.
However, the C919 is still reliant on foreign components and has not received certification from major U.S. or European aviation regulators, limiting its ability to win customers in many overseas markets.
“Production of COMAC’s C919 narrow-body passenger jet still relies heavily on foreign suppliers,” Andreas Mischer, an analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies, or MERICS, told CNBC.
He highlighted the aircraft’s engines, manufactured by CFM International, a joint venture between U.S.-based GE Aerospace and France’s Safran Aircraft Engines.
COMAC also fell short of a “Made in China 2025” goal for domestically-produced large passenger aircraft to capture 10% of China’s domestic market, Mischer said.
Nevertheless, COMAC has increasingly showcased the aircraft overseas. The C919 and smaller C909 made their Dubai Airshow debuts in November 2025, where COMAC said it wanted to deepen ties with the global aviation industry.
The C919 is a single-aisle narrow-body airliner that can carry up to 174 passengers, designed for the same broad market segment as Boeing’s 737 MAX and Airbus’s A320neo.
Can COMAC challenge Boeing and Airbus?
While China is one of the world’s largest aviation markets, giving COMAC a meaningful domestic customer base, the country’s domestic airlines continue to depend on Boeing and Airbus aircraft.
China’s first C919 high-altitude aircraft takes off during its maiden flight test at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on July 29, 2026 in Shanghai, China.
Visual China Group | Getty Images
In May, China confirmed an order of 200 Boeing planes, as well as engines and spare parts, demonstrating the country’s continued reliance on U.S.-made commercial jets even as Beijing backs COMAC.
COMAC has built up a substantial order backlog, mainly from Chinese airlines and leasing companies, but production remains relatively small.
Mischer said COMAC had delivered a cumulative 32 C919s by the end of 2025,…
Read More: China’s answer to Boeing and Airbus makes first international flight