China’s
first domestically made passenger jet flew its maiden commercial flight on May
28th. The development comes as a major boost to Beijing's plan to
compete with industry giants such as Boeing and Airbus in the global aircraft
market.
The
C919 plane, built by the Commercial Aviation Corporation of China, carried
about 130 passengers on the flight, according to state-owned
newspaper China Daily. The jet took off May 28th morning from Shanghai Hongqiao
Airport and landed less than two hours later in Beijing.
The flight was operated by state-owned China Eastern Airlines
and the side of the plane was emblazoned with the words: “The World's First C919.”