Comac appears to have unveiled shortened and stretched variants of its C919 narrowbody, more than a year after the programme was certificated by Chinese regulators.
According to Chinese social media posts, the two variants were seen at Comac’s booth at the Shanghai International Airshow, which was held between 23 and 25 November.
The shortened version, which is also labelled as a “plateau version”, can seat 140 passengers in a two-class configuration. The display also states the variant will be suitable for high-altitude operations, such as from Lhasa in China’s Tibet region.
As for the stretched variant, Comac idicates the jet will be able to seat 210 passengers in two classes. The larger model “conforms to the trend of large-scale development in the single-aisle aircraft market”.
FlightGlobal understands technical specifications of the two variants are not publicly available yet.
The C919 entered commercial service with launch customer China Eastern Airlines in May this year. In September, the Shanghai-based carrier signed for 100 more C919s, with deliveries to run beyond 2030.
The programme also counts Hainan Airlines group carriers Suparna and Urumqi Air as customers, with the two carriers holding commitments for 60 narrowbodies.
China has pinned high hopes on the C919 programme, touting it as a homegrown alternative to the Boeing 737 family and Airbus A320 family.
Story amended with updates to technical specifications.
