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| Embraer Phenom 300. Photo: Embraer Executive Jets |
[Avionics Today 12-30-2014] After six years of development, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has finally certified the country’s first homemade regional jet, the Commercial Aircraft Association of China’s (COMAC’s) ARJ-21. The ARJ21-700 — which stands for the Advanced Regional Jet for the 21st Century — is China’s first domestically produced regional aircraft.
The turbofan short/medium range regional jet has a standard range of 2,225 km ideal for operating between China’s central hub cities and small towns. It is equipped with 168 seats, 78 in a dual-class configuration and 90 in a full economy class formation and its economic life is designed to be 60,000 flying hours or 20 calendar years.
The CAAC began the certification process in 2012 and conducted more than 1,100 hours of flight tests for the aircraft. Following a period of improving the model designs, the ARJ-21 will begin entering service in 2018. As of now, COMAC reports there are 278 orders for the jet.