CHINA signed its biggest aircraft export agreement, both in terms of number of jets and contract value, yesterday at the 7th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai in Guangdong Province.
The Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) will sell 25 ARJ21-700 regional jets, including options, to GE Commercial Aviation Services of the United States in a deal worth 5 billion yuan (US$733 million).
The first jet to be delivered under the deal will be in 2013, with the rest following at a rate of one a month.
COMAC Chairman Zhang Qingwei said this was the first time that Chinese-developed and manufactured regional jets have entered airline markets in the West.
"In the global economic downturn, financing is a main difficulty of all companies," said Roger N. Seager, vice president of the GE Commercial Aviation Services. "Our investment in the ARJ21 shows our confidence in the manufacturer and the Chinese market."
Seager said more clients have shown an interest in the ARJ21. "Some customers of GE Aviation have already expressed interest. I can't tell you the names but there are Chinese customers, and European and American customers as well."
The ARJ21 (Advanced Regional Jet for the 21st Century) was developed independently by China. It has between 78 and 90 seats and a range of 2,225 kilometers. A total of 206 ARJ21-700s have been ordered so far.