View of a C919 plane in Shanghai. YIN LIQIN/CHINA NEWS SERVICE
The high-altitude variant of China's C919 completed its maiden test flight on Wednesday, advancing the homegrown narrowbody program from a single standard aircraft toward a broader product family and positioning it to fill an emerging supply gap on the country's plateau routes, industry experts said.
The first aircraft flew for one hour and 59 minutes from Shanghai Pudong International Airport and completed all scheduled in-air test tasks before landing back in Shanghai, said Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), the carrier's maker.
"The flight is a landmark in the C919's transition from a single baseline model to a complete aircraft family," said Zhu Keli, founding director of the China Institute of New Economy.
The development demonstrates the potential to adapt the basic C919 platform for different operating environments and passenger capacities, allowing COMAC to eventually offer airlines a family of aircraft rather than a one-size-fits-all product, Zhu said.
