COMAC C919

Michaelsinodef · Dec 24, 2022

paiemon said:
I think servicing will be key there to improving reliability, thus ensuring more availability and expanding use in a positive feedback loop. Having planes doesn't do you much good if they are grounded frequently. That is something Airbus and Boeing have honed over decades of experience to establish best practices that keep those fleets running at such high uptime. It is good Chinese airlines have so much experience with Boeing and Airbus, that knowledge will be invaluable when they partner with COMAC to get those programs off the ground. As much as IC equipment may be big on reliability and uptime, airliners are even more so. Unreliable IC equipment just costs you output and money, unreliable Airliners cost you trust and people's safety lives, which you can't earn back. The aftermarket service and repair program will be the most important element to COMACs domestic and future international success.

I think they might try and get some tricks from the PLAAF.

Like the J20 that apparantly has sensors or the likes that can track status of certain parts, and apparantly then go on ahead and notify the service/repairmen that some part might need to be changed.

tphuang · Dec 24, 2022

Michaelsinodef said:
I think they might try and get some tricks from the PLAAF.

Like the J20 that apparantly has sensors or the likes that can track status of certain parts, and apparantly then go on ahead and notify the service/repairmen that some part might need to be changed.

The civilian and military uptime requirements aren't in the same ball park. PLAAF has definitely benefited from predictive maintenance for its new aircraft and having supplies around, but J-20s are not expected to fly 10 hours a day and have 99% availability. SSJ killed Interjet because it had 90% availability and they couldn't find spares. Generally speaking, it's not a good idea for COMAC to export C919 until they have the maintenance and spare and secondary market worked out and until C919 can have like 98% dispatch rate and fly 10 hours a day. The first couple of years will be a challenging experience for both COMAC and the Chinese airlines.

Michaelsinodef · Dec 24, 2022

tphuang said:
The civilian and military uptime requirements aren't in the same ball park. PLAAF has definitely benefited from predictive maintenance for its new aircraft and having supplies around, but J-20s are not expected to fly 10 hours a day and have 99% availability. SSJ killed Interjet because it had 90% availability and they couldn't find spares. Generally speaking, it's not a good idea for COMAC to export C919 until they have the maintenance and spare and secondary market worked out and until C919 can have like 98% dispatch rate and fly 10 hours a day. The first couple of years will be a challenging experience for both COMAC and the Chinese airlines.

I c.

Anyways, it's a challenge that 100% will be overcome, and maybe, there can be some transfer of military tech or experience that could help or not (predictive AI/models etc. maybe, although I suppose it might have been a thing for civilian stuff already though huh)

Strangelove · Dec 25, 2022

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China's first C919 to carry out 100-hour verification flight

China Eastern Airlines' C919 numbered B-919A conducts flight training at Yangzhou Taizhou International Airport, east China's Jiangsu Province, December 23, 2022. /CFP

China Eastern Airlines will carry out a 100-hour verification flight for its first C919 aircraft on December 26, 2022.
The airline, as the first user of the model in the world, officially received its first C919 jet numbered B-919A on

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.

The C919 is China's first domestically-built large passenger aircraft developed by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC). It was granted

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by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) in September.

Because the C919 is a new model, China Eastern Airlines will need to carry out an empty aircraft verification test flight on the basis of obtaining initial approval from the CAAC, to test and confirm the aircraft's operational safety, maintenance reliability and various operational support capabilities.

After this, the airline will apply to the CAAC for the Operation Specifications to obtain the final approval for the commercial operation of the C919 aircraft.

China Eastern Airlines said it has selected 24 pilots with rich experience and superb skills as the first batch of C919 pilots.
The first C919 is expected to be put into commercial passenger operation in the spring of 2023.

The remaining four aircraft in China Eastern Airlines' first C919 order will be delivered in succession in the next two years.

tphuang · Dec 25, 2022

Strangelove said:
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China's first C919 to carry out 100-hour verification flight

China Eastern Airlines' C919 numbered B-919A conducts flight training at Yangzhou Taizhou International Airport, east China's Jiangsu Province, December 23, 2022. /CFP

China Eastern Airlines will carry out a 100-hour verification flight for its first C919 aircraft on December 26, 2022.
The airline, as the first user of the model in the world, officially received its first C919 jet numbered B-919A on
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
.

The C919 is China's first domestically-built large passenger aircraft developed by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC). It was granted
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) in September.

Because the C919 is a new model, China Eastern Airlines will need to carry out an empty aircraft verification test flight on the basis of obtaining initial approval from the CAAC, to test and confirm the aircraft's operational safety, maintenance reliability and various operational support capabilities.

After this, the airline will apply to the CAAC for the Operation Specifications to obtain the final approval for the commercial operation of the C919 aircraft.

China Eastern Airlines said it has selected 24 pilots with rich experience and superb skills as the first batch of C919 pilots.
The first C919 is expected to be put into commercial passenger operation in the spring of 2023.

The remaining four aircraft in China Eastern Airlines' first C919 order will be delivered in succession in the next two years.

btw, for everyone's information out there. Carrying large number of test flights before revenue service is quite normal for an airline operating a brand new fleet type. Airline needs to get an understanding of what kind of flight schedule it can put the aircraft on and how to maintain it correctly. Also keep in mind that every time you introduce a new fleet type, you need to also have a new team of maintenance crew, pilots and such to handle it. The pilots will need to have the type rating for this new fleet type and those pilots will only fly that fleet type (unless they bid themselves out). For a new aircraft coming into service anywhere, the launch carrier will probably be cautious and take even longer time. That's why MU is expecting 3 months testing period before revenue service. I think they are being a little cautious, but not completely out of normal here.

by78 · Dec 26, 2022

China's Eastern's first C919 arrives in Beijing after a succesfful first leg of verification flight.

by78 · Dec 26, 2022

by78 · Dec 26, 2022

by78 · Dec 29, 2022

Some close-up details of China Eastern's first C919.

by78 · Dec 30, 2022

China Eastern's first C919 has returned to Shanghai after having flown from Beijing to Xi'an.

COMAC C919

Michaelsinodef

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tphuang

Lieutenant General

Michaelsinodef

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Strangelove

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by78

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