The domestic C919 large passenger aircraft plans to "first flight" in the first half of 2017

It was learned from China Commercial Aircraft Co., Ltd. that the C919 large passenger aircraft is scheduled to “first fly” in the first half of 2017.

The C919 is a domestic large-scale passenger aircraft designed and developed by China. It is a medium- and short-range single-channel narrow-body passenger aircraft with a capacity of 150 or more. The main competitors in the market include the best-selling Airbus 320 series and the Boeing 737 series.

According to reports, after the basic completion of the airborne system installation and the main static and system integration tests, the C919 large passenger aircraft has entered the sprint phase before the "first flight": the whole ground resonance test and the modal coupling test. To put it simply, the test uses an air spring similar to a "jack" to push the plane into the air.

Zhou Liangdao, deputy chief designer of the C919 large passenger aircraft, said in an interview that the recently completed 2.5g static test results are highly consistent with the pre-test strength analysis, indicating that the strong "skeleton" and the body are sufficient to support the aircraft flight. The 2.5g static test verifies the load of the aircraft at 2.5 times gravity.

The developer also told reporters about the "behind the story." In 2009, China's first self-developed regional jet airliner ARJ21 new regional aircraft lost the first time in the ultimate load static test of the whole machine stable pitch (2.5g), after which they experienced a 7-month attack. This time, through innovative methods such as aircraft structural strength automation check platform, the accuracy and efficiency of design and test have been greatly improved.

Up to now, the number of orders for the C919 large passenger aircraft has reached 570. China Eastern Airlines is the world's first user of the C919 large passenger aircraft.

COMAC will also launch the wide-body passenger aircraft project in 2017 and realize the small batch production delivery of the new ARJ21 regional aircraft.