China’s ARJ21 opens new routes in northernmost Heilongjiang Province

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China’s self-developed regional jetliner ARJ21 on Wednesday carried passengers from the southwestern city of Chengdu to the northeastern city of Harbin via Jinan in east China’s Shandong Province, marking the opening of its new air routes in the northernmost Heilongjiang Province.

Chengdu Airlines’ Flight EU2239, an ARJ21-700 aircraft, landed at 11:28 a.m. BJT on Harbin Taiping International Airport after flying over 3,200 kilometers from Chengdu to Harbin via Jinan. In the afternoon, it made a shuttle flight between Harbin and Heihe, a city on China's north frontier in Heilongjiang Province, which is part of its planned “1+4” network there.

CGTN Infographic

The ARJ21, manufactured by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), is China’s first homegrown jetliner. The jet with 78 to 90 seats and a range of up to 3,700 km acquired certification in December 2014 and made its maiden flight in June, 2016.

In December, 2017, the ARJ21 conducted more than 60 adaptive flights in seven airports in northern China’s Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces, to test its performance in extreme cold regions.

“It performed well even in the lowest temperature of minus 30 degrees Celsius,” said Chen Yong, chief designer of the ARJ21.

This April, COMAC completed a supplemental crosswind test for the ARJ21-700 regional jet at Iceland’s Kevlavik International Airport, with the aim to widen the aircraft’s operating envelope.

Till now, ARJ21’s domestic routes have added up to eight. Five of such jet have been in service for more than 2,600 hours and flown over 65,000 passengers with load factors of around 90 percent.

[Infographic designed by Zhang Xuecheng; Top image: China’s self-developed regional jetliner ARJ21-700 lands at Heihe Aihui Airport in Heihe, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, May 2, 2018. /VCG Photo]

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