China has formed a new state-owned company to oversee the development of aircraft seating at least 150 passengers and has indicated that it is looking for foreign partners.
The new company, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (CACC), was formally launched on 11 May in Shanghai.
The Chinese government has for the past four years been talking about establishing a company to develop aircraft with a minimum take-off weight of 100t and seating at least 150 passengers.
Chinese vice-premier Zhang Dejiang said at the launch ceremony that "China should actively import sophisticated technologies, and at the same time make breakthroughs in core technologies and achieve related independent intellectual property rights".
The government hopes the country can be producing large aircraft by around 2020, but the new company is not putting a timeframe on when such aircraft may be flying. It is also playing down suggestions that it has been established to build aircraft to challenge Airbus and Boeing.
CACC president Jin Zhuanglong told the official Xinhua news agency: "Since large aircraft cannot be made in one or two days, CACC will pose no threat to large jet-makers like Boeing and Airbus." He added that CACC "welcomes co-operation from foreign companies".
CACC has registered capital of 19 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) and its biggest single shareholder is the state-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, which invested 6 billion yuan.
The country's two state-owned aerospace groups, China Aviation Industry Corporation I (AVIC I) and China Aviation Industry Corporation II (AVIC II), are also major shareholders.
Other shareholders include Shanghai Aircraft Manufacturing Factory and AVIC I's First Aircraft Institute. Other companies that have been identified as partners in the programme include steel producer Baosteel and Aluminium Corp of China, in addition to the Shanghai government.
CACC president Jin says that between 3,000 and 5,000 "non-state businesses nationwide would be ushered into the large jet programme" as well.
Source: Flight International
