Development to include flight school, assembly lines, maintenance facility and R&D
Pianjin in northern China plans to develop a general aviation centre that could include several small aircraft assembly lines.
The Pianjin city government signed a contract with China Aviation Industries Corporation I (AVIC I) in late April to build an aircraft factory that would assemble several types of inexpensive private aircraft developed in Europe and North America.
Li Hui, director of AVIC I's Zhonghangfei Technology Development Centre, says he is in talks with foreign manufacturers to establish assembly lines in Pianjin for the Evector EV-97, Van's RV-9 and a series of small aircraft developed by Poland's EADS-PZL.
Operations could begin as early as 2006, assuming Pianjing soon secures Chinese government approval to build a new airport and general aviation centre.
The Pianjin factory would be AVIC I's first foray into general aviation because small aircraft are currently only manufactured in China by AVIC II. Pianjin and foreign partners would provide the capital and AVIC I has agreed to provide manpower, skills and technology.
Pianjin executive deputy mayor Wang Zhongping says a general aviation industry development zone should be completed by 2015 and will include a flight school, maintenance facility, aircraft manufacturing lines and an aircraft research and development centre. "Pianjin will become the aviation city of northern China," he says.
Pianjin, which needs a new industry to replace its current oil drilling business, has decided to invest in building a general aviation centre and is seeking further investment from Chinese and foreign general aviation companies.
Pianjin hopes to become the model for development of China's fledgling general aviation industry, with the goal of building 1,500 small aircraft and training up to 2,000 pilots each year and hosting a fly-in that could become China's equivalent of Oshkosh.
"Pianjin is an oil city and is quite rich. The city can afford this type of development and they need to find an activity for the next 30 to 50 years if oil is no more," says Li Dali, director of the Beijing Sino-Aviation Research Institute, which has completed studies on the project for Pianjin.
BRENDAN SOBIE / BEIJING
Source: Flight International
