ÿ�մ���

Photo:��

The COMAC C909, originally known as the ARJ21, entered commercial service with Chengdu Airlines on June 28, 2016. Nearly nine years later, the aircraft has begun international commercial operations from China, with a flight from Hohhot Baita International Airport (HET) in North China’s Inner Mongolia to Chinggis Khan International Airport (UBN) in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

The flight was operated by����with a C909, registered as B-605U. According to Flightradar24,����and landed in Ulaanbaatar at 10:10 local time. With 74 passengers onboard the inaugural service, the flight was welcomed with the traditional water cannon salute. The aircraft has been in active service in China’s border areas like Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, and the northeast, but has now expanded into international territory directly from China.

��

Speaking about the development, COMAC Chief Designer and Chief Engineer Chen Yong said,

C909 Operations In China

Photo:��

The ARJ21’s first commercial flight operated from Chengdu Shuanglia Airport to Shanghai just over nine years ago. In November 2024,��, bringing it in line with the convention of its two programs - the C919 and C929. The C909 is China’s first short-to-medium-range turbofan regional jet, providing a seating capacity of up to 97 seats.

According to COMAC, up to 166 aircraft have been delivered, operating on over 700 routes and carrying over 24 million passengers in the past nine years. Since it entered service in Xianjiang in June 2023, up to 22 aircraft have been deployed on over 120 routes, transporting over 1.3 million passengers. In June 2025, the aircraft launched four daily flights between Kashgar and Yining, coinciding with Xinjiang’s tourist season.

COMAC has reportedly received positive feedback from airlines like Chendu Airlines regarding the suitability of the aircraft in places like Xinjiang. The aircraft that operated the inaugural international flight (B-605U) was built in June 2020 and was delivered to Air China that same month. It has 90 economy class seats in a 2-3 configuration.

According to��, there are 149 C909s in active service, while 16 others are inactive (including those of COMAC itself), and 380 more are to be delivered.��, followed by Chengu Airlines with 30 aircraft and China Eastern with 27. Other operators include China Southern, Shantou Airlines, China Express, Genghis Khan Airlines, Jiangxi Airlines, and TransNusa.

The Chinese manufacturer has received a substantial number of orders so far for its C909 and C919 aircraft.

Development Of the C909 And C919

Photo:��Mario Hagen | Shutterstock

While the C909 operated its first commercial international flight from China this month, it has made inroads in Southeast Asia. It operated its first flight in Indonesia in April 2023, followed by services on the Manado-Guangzhou route, the aircraft’s longest ever route. While not listed on the ch-aviation database, Vietnam’s Vietjet also operates two C909, leased from Chengdu Airlines.

Meanwhile, the larger����has been in commercial service��. By December 2024, the aircraft had carried 1 million passengers on various routes. The C919 performed its first commercial international flight in January 2025, with a service between Shanghai and Hong Kong.

China has been pushing to get the C919 more recognition in the international market.����in the near future and sell the jet to EU operators, but that is highly unlikely. The program is also susceptible to the US-China trade wars,��. However, China aims to develop its own powerplant for the aircraft.

• ��