China’s first homegrown passenger jet could splinter the duopoly of Airbus and Boeing planes in the country’s domestic market and beyond, a report by a Berlin-based think tank has claimed.

The Mercator Institute for China Studies (Merics) spelled out how C919 can help advance Beijing’s “strategic objectives” in aviation, as per Hong Kong-based newspaper South China Morning Post (SCMP).

What does the report say about the made-in-China commercial jets? When will the C919 planes become operational? We explain.

‘Source of national pride’

Merics said on Tuesday (17 January) that the market entry of the C919 narrowbody jet, produced by the state-owned Commercial Aviation Corp of China (COMAC), is a “symbol of China’s technological rise and a source of national pride”.

The report says that C919 can take advantage of the size of the aviation market in China, “strong industrial policy and a sector dominated by state-owned companies”.

“Production glitches or safety issues aside, COMAC’s domestic market share looks set to climb steadily in a huge and increasingly protected home market, with the company at some point reaching the scale to brave the step into foreign markets and global competition,” the think tank said in its report, as per SCMP.

Though it is billed as a domestically-manufactured jet, the engine, avionics, control systems, communications and landing gear of C919 are imported from US and European manufacturers.

While…