By Euronews
Published on
A Chinese electric passenger plane completed its first crewed flight on Saturday, marking a historic first for China’s aviation industry and the state-backed Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), state media reported.
The aircraft was reportedly manned by two pilots and an engineer as it flew for around 60 kilometres, staying airborne for 16 minutes and 38 seconds.
It took off and landed in Binzhou, Shandong Province, in eastern China. China’s state broadcaster CCTV News and the Xinhua news agency first reported on the flight.
The plane, a CE-25A designed for short-distance commercial flights between cities, used an electric propulsion system. It can carry 19 passengers and has a maximum takeoff weight of 10 tonnes. It has a cruising speed of up to 300 km per hour and can fly at an altitude of 2,400 metres.
COMAC said the flight “operated normally.” The aircraft was built in China as a collaborative effort between COMAC and battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL), Shanghai Jiao Tong University and others.
The manned flight is the latest step in the plane’s development. It had already flown autonomously in February this year and has since completed 19 unmanned test flights.
The manufacturer applied for type certification from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) but has yet to receive approval to enter commercial service.