China, COMAC and The Future

On Monday, November 2, 2015, the first Chinese larger-airliner aircraft rolled out - the C919. This aircraft was built by COMAC (Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China) and will compete with the A320 and the B737, seating about 168 passengers. Although the hope is for western certification, the C919 has yet to be FAA-certified, currently limiting the countries where the aircraft can operate. Given this information, please answer the following questions:

1) Do you believe that the C919 will ever receive FAA certification? Why or why not?
2) For sake of argument, if the C919 receives FAA certification, what challenges do you see for US carriers? Look at various aspects - for example, what would in mean in terms of aircraft purchases? What would it mean in terms of public perception?
3) Discuss COMAC a little and its relationship with the Chinese airlines and the Chinese government. Are there other aircraft in the works? If so, what are the specifics?
4) If this aircraft were to receive FAA certification, do you feel that other companies would enter the market as competitors to Boeing and Airbus?
5) Finally, has Boeing or Airbus responded to this rollout in any way?

I believe that the C919 can eventually receive FAA certification only if the aircraft can keep up with all airworthiness directives and manufacturing directives (Press). China is a country that is outpacing the rest of the world with technology and definitely outpacing the United States, I believe that if they aren't able to get certified that they will work as hard a possible to get the FAA certification so it can be used in the United States. It

I believe it will just be another company that sells airplanes to US carriers. It is kind of like the auto industry. We have the big 3 auto companies that have formed a "tri-opoly". I do not think that the c919 will make it a tri-opoly right away but I think it is something that it can work up to. If US companies can use the aircraft that can help them raise revenue, I don't see why they wouldn't invest in them. It also is about $20 million cheaper than Boeing or Airbus so it is already a money saver (James).

The ARJ-21-700 has been developed which is a little bit smaller and would be use d of regional flights. There has been also 60 orders for the aircraft as well (Meszaros). There is a lot of models of the ARJ as well and with the production being very positive, there is no reason why the ARJ's won't be on the same path.

It is definitely possible but I don't think that with the Comac coming into play that means a bunch of other runs are going to pop out of nowhere. It would be a long and drawn out process just like the Comac.

There has not been too much of a response yet. I believe that Boeing and Airbus will just continue to do what they do and build the planes that in demand in the US and be the two aviation leaders.

Press, A. (n.d.). China has built this plane to go head-to-head with Boeing and Airbus. Retrieved March 04, 2017

Andrea James on July 1, 2009 at 6:00 AM. "How Much Is a Shiny New Boeing 737 Worth? Not $72 Million." Boeing and Aerospace News. N.p., 30 June 2009. Web. 04 Mar. 2017.

Meszaros, J. (2017). China’s Comac C919 Edges Toward First Flight. AINonline.