China Civil Aviation Industry, Technology, Infrastructure: News & Discussions

[Daniel808]

PICTURE: Chengdu Airlines works to enter ARJ21 into service

Chengdu Airlines plans to launch its first ARJ21-700 commercial passenger service on 28 June, seven months after taking delivery of the aircraft.

The ARJ21 launch customer tells Flightglobal that since it received the jet, it has been conducting flight tests according to requirements by the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

The plan is to deploy the regional jet on the Chengdu-Shanghai Hongqiao route for its first commercial service. The airline adds, however, that the launch date is still subject to changes.

The aircraft, registered B-3321, has meanwhile successfully completed route verification flights between Chengdu Shuangliu International airport and Shanghai Hongqiao International airport, says Comac.

Chengdu Airlines says it is scheduled to take delivery of two more ARJ21s this year. The airline was originally targeting to launch commercial services with the aircraft this February and has been preparing for several years for the integration of the new type to its all-Airbus fleet.

It plans to first enter the ARJ21 into service on short flights to established domestic airports such as Beijing, Xian, Wuhan, Shenzhen and Shanghai, to ensure it can handle safe and reliable operations, as well as to build customer awareness of the indigenous aircraft.

Flightglobal’s Fleets Analyzer database lists Chengdu Airlines as operating a fleet of 18 A320s and three A319s. It has a further 29 ARJ21s on order.

https://www.flightglobal.com/news/a...du-airlines-works-to-enter-arj21-into-426166/

Congrats for China's Growing Aviation Industry

 

[Jlaw]

Call the air ambulance: Medical helicopters tipped for future China boom
SINGAPORE/BEIJING | BY SIVA GOVINDASAMY AND FANG YAN
Markets | Wed Jun 8, 2016 6:41am EDT Related: WORLD, CHINA

View attachment 309529


As China opens up its low-level airspace to civilian aircraft, the global aviation industry is laying the groundwork for a boom beyond private business jets and pilot training schools - with the purchase of fleets of air ambulance helicopters.

The freeing up of airways previously reserved for military use is a huge opportunity for Norbert Ducrot, head of Airbus Group's helicopters unit in China. Ducrot says there could be enough demand for more than 3,000 emergency medical choppers in China - up from as few as about 20 now in service.

While the United States already has more than 1,500 air ambulance helicopters, China's fleet is minimal because of the civilian airspace curbs. In a country where the World Health Organisation has estimated more than 250,000 annual road traffic deaths, air evacuations from both clogged Chinese city streets and remote rural areas could speed medical care and save lives.

The change proposed by China's State Council is set to ultimately raise the ceiling on airspace for general aviation to 3,000 meters from 1,000 meters. That would radically multiply both the heights and the routes air ambulances could use, a boon for pioneers like Qian Siwei's China Air Medical Service Ltd.

"Emergency air medical services have a great growth potential in China because our target customer is the general public, not just the privileged," Qian, a gynecologist by training, told Reuters. While the going rate for a helicopter evacuation is around 30,000 yuan ($4,565) per hour, companies like Qian's offer discount schemes that can cut costs by as much as 50 percent in some cases.

Based in the province of western Shaanxi, China Air Medical has a fleet of four helicopters and two business jets, operating with the backing of local authorities. Qian claimed his service has proved so popular that three other provinces have invited Chen Air Medical Service to set up similar operations.

China Air Medical is just one of a raft of operators across a broader aviation sector that Beijing is seeking to develop into a thriving home-grown industry. State-owned aircraft maker AVIC, which also supplies helicopters, is another.

But the liberalization is also enticing Western firms like Airbus and U.S. aircraft maker Textron Inc, keen to target what they see as a major growth opportunity.


HELIPADS 'COMPLICATED'

For Airbus executive Ducrot, the arithmetic is simple. He expects to sell 60 helicopters to China this year - for prices he declined to disclose - and for the country to buy up to 300 helicopters annually by 2025 as its economic growth still outpaces developed markets and liberalization kicks in.

"By 2025, China will become the most important helicopter market in the world," said Ducrot.

While some local authorities are enthusiastic, as in Qian's case, and some modern hospitals may be able to accommodate helipads, China's healthcare sector is already creaking and ageing hospital infrastructure may act as a brake on air ambulance growth.

At the Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital in the city of Chengdu, southwestern China, engineer Liu Xiaoxi, said that when the facility was under construction in the 1980s, a helipad was considered, but rejected as being "too complicated".

"It's difficult to add things on to the building, especially as tall towers have sprung up on all four sides," said Liu. While some hospitals would be able to add them, he said, "If you want to add a helipad on top of a building then you have to design that in early on in terms of the various beams and supports."

Still Beijing is ploughing ahead with reforms, despite uncertainty on issues like healthcare infrastructure, helipad construction and how Beijing will regulate a low-level civil aviation business.


GROWTH WARNING

China could have 2,000 general aviation airports by 2030 if the country opens the sector up to private investment, says Francis Chao, publisher of monthly publication China Civil Aviation Report and a contractor with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on U.S.-China aviation exchanges.

That compares with a projection by China's State Council of 500 airports by 2020.

But Chao warned growth could be restricted "without further relaxation on flight permits, availability of chartering and fuel supply, more and accessible airfield and flight services".

Apart from emergency medical services, companies like Airbus and Textron unit Bell Helicopters - which declined to comment for this story - are targeting sales in the rapidly growing domestic tourism market, fire-fighting and police services, and by companies that need to patrol pipelines and power lines.

For example, Airbus agreed to set up a final assembly line in China for its H135 helicopters last October, though it has yet to announce a location for the new facility. It's also investing in support services like sales offices, maintenance hubs and a training center for pilots - the latter being in short supply across the country.


(Reporting by Siva Govindasamy in SINGAPORE and Fang Yan in BEIJING; Additional reporting by SHANGHAI newsroom; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)

Does China produce domestic civilian helicopters?

 

[ahojunk]

Aha, the OBOR, we are also talking the air silk route now ....

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Hainan Airlines launches direct flight between Beijing, Manchester
(Xinhua) 09:02, June 12, 2016

MANCHESTER, June 11, 2016 (Xinhua) -- An aircraft of Hainan Airlines touches down in Manchester airport, Britain, June 10, 2016. Hainan Airlines launched direct flight between Beijing and Manchester on Friday. It is the only non-stop flight to Beijing outside of London. (Xinhua)

 

[ahojunk]

A press release from Hainan Airlines....

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Hainan Airlines Inaugurates Direct Air Service From Beijing to Manchester
- Opening a new "Silk Road" in the air, bringing China closer to Britain

Jun 10, 2016, 13:00 ET from Hainan Airlines Co., LTD

MANCHESTER, England, June 10, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 10, 2016, a Hainan Airlines' Airbus A330 took off from Beijing Capital International Airport and landed at the Manchester Airport after a more than 10-hour flight. China-based Hainan Airlines today formally opened a direct air route between Beijing and Manchester, further improving the airline's intercontinental route network in Europe and offering more choices to international travelers.

Creating a new Silk Road in the air together, and opening a new chapter in Sino-UK cooperation

Manchester Airport CEO Charlie Cornish and Hainan Airlines President Xie Haoming exchange gifts.

To welcome its first passengers on the flight to Manchester, Hainan Airlines had the words "Hai! Manchester" painted on the side of the aircraft in celebration of the maiden journey. In addition, Hainan Airlines flight attendants prepared limited-edition postcards and British-themed gift sets for each passenger. The exciting range of maiden voyage activities highlight Hainan Airlines as an international, exclusive air service brand.

At 6:05 am local time in Britain, following the touchdown of the aircraft at Manchester Airport, Hainan Airlines held a brief welcoming ceremony in the arrivals area. Chinese Consul General in Manchester Li Yongsheng, Manchester Airport CEO Charlie Cornish and Hainan Airlines President Xie Haoming attended the event where they each delivered speeches. British and local Manchester government officials, representatives from leading local firms and commercial associations, Hainan Airlines' local key customers and supportive media outlets gathered at the airport to witness the important moment of the successful maiden voyage from Beijing to Manchester together with Hainan Airlines.

On the afternoon of the same day, Hainan Airlines was invited to visit the National Football Museum together with local government officials, representatives from local commercial associations and key companies as well as news media outlets fromChina, the UK and other countries, providing an opportunity to experience the definitive football culture that the city ofManchester is known for.

A factor heightening the importance and the likely success of the newly-launched air route is the extension of the visa term for Chinese nationals visiting the UK from six months to two years, a relaxation in visa regulations that was announced earlier this year. The UK government is also planning to launch a ten-year multiple entry visa program, providing more accessibility to the country for Chinese visitors. The opening of the air route between Beijing and Manchester is expected to entice more investors from China to invest in northern England and make it more convenient for business executives and travelers travelling betweenChina and Britain as well as between China and Europe generally.

Opening a new air route in support of the "One Belt One Road" policy, and responding to the Chinese government's national development strategy

Hainan Airlines' air route between Beijing and Manchester enables the first direct air service between the two big cities. The addition of the route at this time is also in response to and in support of the "One Belt, One Road" initiative, the program rolled out by Chinese President Xi Jinping, to rebuild a modern equivalent of the ancient silk route that joined China to Europe in ancient times, as well as the Northern Powerhouse program, the UK government's program to boost economic growth in the north of England. The direct route creates not only an air traffic bridge between the two cities but also a new Silk Road in the air.

2016 is the starting year of China's 13th Five-Year Plan period and also the year when China and countries along the route spelled out by the "One Belt, One Road" policy are expected to engage in efforts to promote the initiative. As the expectations behind the initiative are constantly evolving and bilateral exchanges are being further enhanced, Hainan Airlines plans to continue expanding its intercontinental network of routes in Europe and America in alignment with the initiative, while tapping into emerging markets such as Latin America and Africa. In addition, the airline will continue to play a key role as the signature representative of Eastern culture and become a cultural pioneer in the "One Belt, One Road" initiative.

Hainan Airlines provides travelers with the Beauty of the Orient in tandem with a world-class experience through its network of international routes

In 2016, Hainan Airlines opened several international routes, including Changsha-Los Angeles, Beijing-Tel Aviv and Beijing-Manchester. The new Beijing-Calgary route is scheduled to be launched later this month. Contributions from the international side of the business to the company's revenue stream are growing year by year as Hainan Airlines expands rapidly in global markets. Hainan Airlines currently operates several intercontinental routes. With its comprehensive domestic network and partnerships with local airlines in the UK, the company will provide passengers travelling between China and the UK with more destination and route choices.

The airline has created its distinct Eastern hospitality by combining Chinese cultural aesthetics with its unique approach to an Oriental-style service. In addition, the company has built a new international brand image with its "Oriental Beauty" concept in a move to provide an enhanced level of services. Hainan Airlines has been named as a SKYTRAX five-star airline for five consecutive years. It is one of the world's seven SKYTRAX five-star airlines and the only SKYTRAX member from mainland China. The airline has been widely recognized by Chinese and international travelers for the quality of its services.

As the ancient Chinese saying explains, "A chance encounter can lead to a cherished experience in return", Hainan Airlines can take you from the Beauty of the Orient and deliver you into a quintessentially British experience.

HNA Beijing-Manchester Flight Schedule (Note: All takeoff and landing times are local time):

About Hainan Airlines

Hainan Airlines Co., Ltd., founded in January 1993, is committed to providing passengers with comprehensive and seamless air travel services as one of the world's seven SKYTRAX five-star airlines and the only SKYTRAX member from mainland China.

Hainan Airlines has a young luxury fleet mainly composed of Boeing 737s, 787s and Airbus 330s configured for both passenger and cargo flights, providing passengers with premium first class in which each seat is surrounded by dividers assuring the passenger full privacy as well as a newly upgraded spacious and comfortable business class. The airline has, to date, launched over 700 inbound and outbound routes connecting passengers to more than 100 cities around the world, with comprehensive coverage across China and extending into Asia, Europe and North America.

For more information, please visit Hainan Airlines' official global website www.hnair.com.

 

[ahojunk]

China Signs $790M Deal for 100 Airbus H135 Helicopters
by Mark Huber
- June 13, 2016, 12:54 PM

A Chinese consortium has placed an order for 100 Airbus Helicopters to be assembled in Qingdao, Shandong Province, beginning in 2018. The deal is worth approximately $790 million. (Photo: Airbus Helicopters)

A Chinese consortium today finalized a $790 million, 10-year contract for 100 Airbus H135 light twins to be assembled in Qingdao, Shandong Province beginning in 2018. The consortium is composed of China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS), Qingdao United General Aviation Industrial Development Company (Qingdao United) and CITIC Offshore Helicopter Co. Ltd (COHC). A letter of intent for the deal was announced last year.

The agreement was signed today in Beijing's Great Hall of People, in the presence of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The H135 has gained popularity in China in recent years, performing various parapublic, corporate and tourism missions. Worldwide, nearly 1,200 H135s are in service and the fleet has logged more than three million flight hours.

“With the further opening up of the Chinese skies and the increasing growth in the civil and parapublic segments, China is gearing up to be the biggest market for helicopters in years to come,” said Norbert Ducrot, head of Airbus Helicopters China and North Asia region. The company forecasts a demand for sales of up to 600 light-twin helicopters in China over the next 20 years.


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Airbus Helicopters to build H135 in China
14 Jun 2016

Airbus will build a final assembly line in China for the H135 light-twin.

Airbus Helicopters will build a final assembly line for its H135 light-twin in China, after a Chinese consortium ordered 100 of the type in a deal worth around A$1 billion.

A consortium made up of China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS), Qingdao United General Aviation Industrial Development Company (Qingdao United) and CITIC Offshore Helicopter Co. Ltd (COHC) confirmed the order first mooted in a letter of intent last year. The group formed an industrial partnership to launch a H135 final assembly line in the Yellow Sea port city of Qingdao, in Shandong province on the east coast.

The H135 has gained popularity in China in recent years, performing various para-public missions such as helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS), law enforcement, firefighting, patrol command, and search and rescue (SAR), as well as corporate missions such as tourism and transportation. The rapid development of offshore wind power generation industry in China also presents a new market segment for helicopter operations.

Airbus Helicopters sees a market for 600 light twin-engine helicopters in China in the next 20 years. To date nearly 1200 H135s have been delivered globally, logging more than three million flight hours.

 

[JSCh]

China's large passenger aircraft to take maiden flight, trillion-dollar industry clusters will take shape
(People's Daily Online) 15:22, June 14, 2016

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China's first home-made big passenger plane rolled off line​

China's independently developed C919 large passenger jetliner will take its first flight later this year and complete the follow-up technical verifications as early as 2017 before being delivered, Economic Information Daily reports on Tuesday.

The success of the maiden flight indicates that the domestically produced large passenger aircraft C919 has achieved substantive results, which will not only further promote the rapid development of the country's large aircraft industry but also accelerate large domestic aircraft industry clusters to take shape.

C919, the first China-developed large passenger jetliner, rolled off the assembly line on November 2, 2015 and the test aircraft has completed system debugging and the installation of instrumentation equipment. After the first flight, system tests such as the avionics, flight control and hydraulic checks will be carried out, as well as integrated tests regarding the airborne systems and static tests of the entire aircraft.

If the first flight and the follow-up work go smoothly, the C919 will complete technical validations and be delivered as soon as 2017.

China attaches great importance to the aviation industry, represented by large jets and will introduce a number of industry promotion policies. A blueprint on the strategic emerging industries during the 13th Five-year Plan will be issued in the second half of this year. It will focus on the development of medium and short-haul transport aircrafts with 130-200 seats, single channel and high subsonic and long-range transport aircrafts with 250-350 seats and dual channels.

In addition, advanced turbofan regional aircrafts, turboprop aircrafts, 70-seat turboprop regional aircrafts, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles will also become the focus of development in the next five years.

AircraftEngine Corp of China, the 12th military industrial group of the country incorporated in Beijing on May 31, has been described as having a special mission.

Up until now, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac), the manufacturer of the C919 jetliners, have received a total of 517 orders from 21 customers. It is predicted that by 2030, global demand for 160-seat and single-aisle jetliner will reach about 14,500, among which China is expected to need around 2,650. The Comac says it will sell at least 2,000 C919s and if the price is 50 million US dollars per aircraft, the market size of the C919 will exceed 100 billion U.S. dollars (about 650 billion yuan).

More importantly, with the production and delivery of the C919, the relevant upstream and downstream aviation industry will get rapid development and will accelerate the shape-taking of industrial clusters with a market size on the scale of one trillion dollars.

 

[ahojunk]

The growth of Chinese outbound traveler numbers .... staggering!

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Much of Chinese travel is for leisure; for international the outlook is exceptionally strong
Consumers have an increasing thirst for international travel; the low fuel price is enabling service that could not have been sustained a few years ago; and international travel is easier than before.

In 2015 international (non-Macau/Hong Kong/Taiwan) passengers on Chinese airlines reached 42 million – unsurprisingly, a new record. The year 2015 recorded 33% growth, equating to 10.5 million additional passengers compared with 2014. These 10.5 million additional passengers in a single year (2014-2015) are the same number as the 10.5 million additional passengers carried in the three years between 2011 and 2014.

What the market used to add over three years has now been achieved in a single year. The 42 million international passenger figure in 2015 is double the 21 million carried in 2011.

The figures reflect the growing outbound demand of Chinese tourists and Chinese airlines carrying those passengers, partially out of opportunity and partially at government urging to accelerate international growth.

China's three main state-owned airlines are deploying a higher share of their capacity to international markets.

Air China remains the largest Chinese airline for international capacity, but China Southern has grown remarkably quickly.

Total outbound Chinese tourists via all transportation modes and markets (including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) have been approximated by the government at 120 million, but under new counting methods not yet disclosed.

2020 is forecast to result in a doubling to 200 million annual outbound Chinese visitors – but what looked impossible five years ago is increasingly looking very conservative.

The concern that airlines, airports and countries should have is now not whether the volume will materialise but how they will capture it.

 

[TaiShang]

China's C919 may make maiden flight in 2016

CRI, June 15, 2016

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Photo taken on Feb. 29, 2016 shows a test bench for C919 plane at its research base in Shanghai Aircraft Design And Research Institute of the Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (COMAC), in Shanghai. [Photo/Xinhua]



China's first domestically produced large passenger aircraft, C919, is to make its maiden flight in the second half of this year, Chinese Flight Test Establishment told Xinhua-affiliated business newspaper Economic Information Daily on Monday.

However the Commercial Aircraft Cooperation of China (COMAC), the maker of C919, told the media later the jet is still being tested, and its maiden flight could be postponed till next year.

C919 is expected to strengthen China's capacity in high-end equipment manufacturing and make the country a real manufacturing power.

Twenty-one foreign and domestic customers have already placed 517 orders for the jet.

According to a report released by COMAC, the potential market of C919 is worth more than 650 billion yuan (US$100 billion).

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Photo taken on Feb. 29, 2016 shows the cabin layout of C919 plane demonstrated at its research base in Shanghai Aircraft Design And Research Institute of the Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (COMAC), in Shanghai. [Photo/Xinhua]

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Photo taken on Feb. 29, 2016 shows a test bench for C919 plane at its research base in Shanghai Aircraft Design And Research Institute of the Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (COMAC), in Shanghai. [Photo/Xinhua]

Photo taken on Feb. 29, 2016 shows a test bench for C919 plane at its research base in Shanghai Aircraft Design And Research Institute of the Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (COMAC), in Shanghai. [Photo/Xinhua]

 

[S10]

I doubt it. My estimate would be mid 2017 at the earliest, and early 2018 at the latest. The jet won't be able to enter commercial operation before 2020.

 

[greenwood]

I doubt it. My estimate would be mid 2017 at the earliest, and early 2018 at the latest. The jet won't be able to enter commercial operation before 2020.

On what evidences your estimate based?

 

[jadesky]

the plane looks good.

 

[TaiShang]

On what evidences your estimate based?

Article also states that the maiden flight might be postponed to next year; so, 2017 seems the likely date.

 

[Beast]

COMAC is just trying to be cautious, Chinese Flight Test Establishment shall know more than those COMAC businessman since they know nuts about technical stuff.

 

[S10]

On what evidences your estimate based?

On COMAC's poor track record

 

[TaiShang]

On COMAC's poor track record

I think they want to do overdo the safety. This is not unexpected for the first model. I remember Dreamliner also had put off the launch schedule several times.