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- [Narrator] In this video,
we will explore the Chinese aviation market
and the four Chinese jets
that will rival Boeing and Airbus for the next century.
Everything from small regional jets
to lumbering aircraft
to rival the Boeing 747 and Airbus A 380.
What are they?
And what would they be like to fly?
And why the western world's have noticed?
Let's crack open this fortune cookie and find out.
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The aviation market is made up of two big players,
Boeing and Airbus.
And as well Embraer.
But soon there may be a third player
who rivals the two friendly giants.
COMAC.
COMAC stands
for the commercial Aircraft Corporation of China.
Essentially, China's economy is snowballing so much
that they need to ensure
that they have their own aviation industry
to keep up with demand.
China plans to build an extra 200 airports
over the next 15 years
to cope with this relentless growth spurt.
And only last year,
Boeing's own commercial market outlook projection
said that China would require
8090 new passenger aircraft
plus related aviation Services over the next 20 years.
A market that is worth $2.9 trillion.
So honestly,
why doesn't China take a chunk of that domestic market
for themselves?
Why give money to the west when you have scores of engineers
and a chance to build a healthy local economy?
After all, it worked for cars and trains.
Planes are essentially the same.
Well, kind of.
But we'll get into that.
So what are the aircraft
that COMAC is planning to bring to the market?
There is the ARJ21
which stands for the advanced regional jet.
Nicknamed the Soaring phoenix in the local language.
Then there are the three brothers
the C919,
the C929
and the C939.
C standing for COMAC.
Nine for forever.
And the last two digits for how many 10s of passengers
each aircraft can carry.
So let's break this down
and start with the smallest of the four.
The ARJ21.
The ARJ had its first flight in 2008.
But it took seven years
to be delivered to its first customers.
32 of these aircraft are currently flying across China
and there are 208 reported orders.
There are two versions a 90 seater-700
and 105 seater-900.
The base model only has a range of 1200 nautical miles
which is the equivalent of the very first Boeing 737
from 1967.
But there is an additional upgrade
to boost it up to 2000 nautical miles.
While small as it's designed for regional travel in China
it doesn't actually require the distance.
That is for the next in the series.
Next up we have the C919
which is the equivalent to the Boeing 737
and the Airbus A320.
Which are both the most popular aircraft ever built.
There is only one version
which can sit 168 passengers in ol economy lounge
or 158 passengers with a business class.
It has similar engines to the Boeing 737 Max
which allow it to fly a range of 2200 nautical miles.
Again, there's an extended range version
that can push this up to 3000 nautical miles.
And this aircraft is allegedly very popular
with over 1000 orders.
Now just a quick side note.
When I say orders for these aircraft
that needs to be taken with a grain of salt.
As nearly all of these orders are from Chinese carriers
who are owned by the government.
Or they are nations in developing regions
that have significant Chinese investment.
Or they are from engine manufacturers
who are providing the engines for the planes.
So far, no Western airline has shown any interest
in the COMAC aircraft.
But we will get to that later.
So far six prototypes of the C919 have been built
for flight testing
and it costs around $9 billion so far to produce them.
Although again, other sources have sneakily suggested
that the real cost is closer to $20 billion.
Hey everyone, it's me real life Nick
from Found and Explained.
Has anyone else watched this video
and realized that they're actually using
the gladiator theme song, guess the one from the film
from way back when?
It's really strange to just hear that,
you know, just taken and totally ripped off.
I'm sure they didn't give permission.
But anyway, back to the video.
After the C919, we have the C929.
Or the CRAIC CR 929.
This aircraft has two names
because it's actually a joint venture
between COMAC and the Russian United Aircraft Corporation
RUIC.
This aircraft is an attempt
to replicate the success of the Airbus A 330
and the Boeing 787.
This aircraft would fit up to 291 passengers
with two classes.
Or 440 passengers in a single seating class.
Or it could even fit all of my current subscribers.
So if you wanna get on this Chinese plane with me,
hit that subscribe button down below
and I'll be sure to send you a ticket.
Anyway, back to the plane.
There will be three versions of this plane
with regressively more seats faultless range.
Speaking of range,
this plane will have a default range of 6480 nautical miles
or 12,000 kilometers.
With the two partners believe
that they will sell around 1000 of these aircraft
over the next 10 to 20 years
for an investment of 13 to $20 billion.
The last, the most recent news from the camp
is the progress has slowed down
and the first delivery to customers
has been pushed back to 2029.
Whilst we don't know the real reasons,
the head of the Russian effort admitted it
it was to do with international cooperation.
So I'll let you read into that in your own time.
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Now for the last and most significant of these aircraft
is the mysterious C939.
Now very little was known about this aircraft.
Or it will even be built in the age of Boeing 747 retirings
and Airbus A 380 production line shutting down.
What we do know is that the C 939
will seat over 400 passengers
in a twin engine twin ol configuration.
Much like the biggest 777 X and the Airbus A 350.
It could even be expanded to the same size
of the Boeing 747.
Although at this point,
many of those ideas may be irrelevant.
Because outside of China, they may find few customers.
Part of the reason why Chinese made aircraft not popular
is because of the engines.
At the moment,
China can't produce the same level of quality jet engines
for all of these projects.
So far, they have been working with GE,
Rolls Royce and others to power and make these planes fly.
And it doesn't just stop with the engines.
COMAC is also working with French designers
to build the interior of these planes
right down to the lavatories.
Plus, if you're an airline and you've ordered this aircraft
how will you maintain them?
China doesn't yet have
a worldwide spanning maintenance and parts network
that airlines can easily access.
Unless you're on the border of the nation,
it will be very expensive to operate these aircraft
and likely you will suffer the same fate as Interjet
as they did with their Russian-made regional jets.
Lastly, each of these aircraft need to be certified
in each country and region around the world.
A very long process from an unproven company.
And for a brand new plane type.
These hurdles that will take them a long time to overcome.
But will eventually overcome them.
Those that have watched this video
and have laughed about this attempt
should remember that Boeing also once laughed at Airbus.
And look at them now.
If you enjoyed this exploration of the COMAC range
and what to expect in the future,
then check out my other videos
about Soviet and Russian aircraft.
Pop in, stay awhile.
Subscribe and enjoy all things never built.
Thanks so much for watching.
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