Airbus and Boeing, sitting in the crosshairs of Chinese corporation Comac's aerospace ambitions, remain upbeat about the Chinese narrowbody market.
The Western airframers' customers Air China, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, Hainan Airlines and General Electric Capital Aviation Services were part of an order for up to 100 C919s. CBD Leasing, also known as CLC, was the other customer in the 16 November order. The aircraft is set to enter service in 2016.
Boeing 737 vice-president and general manager, Beverly Wyse, was upbeat on the company's prospects in China.
"We still think there's going to be a tremendously strong market for the 737. Our Chinese customers love our products, they continue to buy our product and we believe they will in the future," says Wyse.
Boeing forecasts that 71%, or 3,090 of the 4,330 aircraft needed in China over the next two decades will be narrowbody aircraft supporting the intra-China market.
Airbus, with 640 A320 family aircraft and 90 A330/A340s accounting for 43% of the Chinese market for commercial aircraft with over 100 seats, shrugged off the launch order. "Where's the big deal?" asks Laurence Barron, president of Airbus China.
He calls the C919 a "competitor" but not a "challenger" to the European airframer. Barron adds that it is the same spirit of competition that brought Airbus into existence 40 years ago.
Wyse says: "We recognise and totally respect China's right to enter this market Competition has been really powerful for our industry as it continues to cause people to invest in their products."
Source: Flight International
