Global airlines body says Chinese aircraft to boost aviation sector

Xinhua
14 May 2025

Zhao Chunling, chief designer of China's homegrown wide-body C929 aircraft at Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), is pictured at a research institute of COMAC in Shanghai, east China, March 5, 2025. (Xinhua/Liu Ying)

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), the global trade association representing airlines, said on Tuesday that Chinese-made aircraft are expected to boost the aviation sector.

NAIROBI, May 14 (Xinhua) -- The International Air Transport Association (IATA), the global trade association representing airlines, said on Tuesday that Chinese-made aircraft are expected to boost the aviation sector.

This photo taken on March 13, 2024, shows a C919 commercial aircraft, manufactured by Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), on display at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Selangor state, Malaysia. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua)

Willie Walsh, director general of the IATA, told Xinhua in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi that Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) is producing efficient and modern airplanes that are a viable alternative to those currently in operation worldwide.

"Chinese-made aircraft are expected to introduce competition in the airplane market and hence offer the airline industry more affordable acquisition costs," Walsh said on the sidelines of an IATA Ground Handling Conference.

"The Chinese-made planes are principally flying in China and in neighboring Asian nations that accept Chinese certification," he said.

The three-day meeting brought together airlines' representatives and policymakers from around the world to discuss solutions to strengthen the global aviation ecosystem.