Air China to purchase 100 locally made C919 jets

Beijing: Air China will buy 100 Comac C919 jets in a deal valued at $10.8 billion based on list prices, giving a boost to the homegrown challenger to Airbus and Boeing.

The planes will be delivered between 2024 and 2031, Air China said in a filing. The Beijing-based airline, one of China’s three biggest carriers, had previously ordered a handful of C919s.

The C919 competes with Boeing’s 737 Max and the Airbus A320neo, the two top-selling jetliners in the world. Air China currently has a fleet of almost 500 airplanes, including 212 in the A320 family and 127 planes from the 737 series, according to data from tracker Planespotters.net.

Comac, as Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China is more commonly known, is angling to disrupt the dominance of Boeing and Airbus in commercial jetliner manufacturing. The order comes on the same day as privately owned Suparna Airlines said it plans to replace its all-Boeing fleet with the C919.

-B