A model of Comac’s C919 aircraft at the Singapore Air Show on February 6, 2018.
SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg/Getty Images
SINGAPORE — China is preparing to showcase its narrow-body passenger aircraft to a global audience for the first time at the Singapore Air Show.
Touted as a competitor to Boeing’s 737 and Airbus 320, the Comac C919 is fast proving to be one of the most anticipated features at this year’s event.
The commercial aircraft was developed by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, or Comac, and was certified by the Civil Aviation Administration of China in September 2022.
“The C919, a narrow-body aircraft developed by Chinese aircraft manufacturer Comac, flies for the first time at the Singapore Airshow,” Singapore Airshow Organizer and Director Experia Events he said in a statement.
The air show, held from February 20 to 25 this year, is usually attended by the dozens thousandsincluding military delegations and aviation enthusiasts, and will be open to the public.
Aerospace and aviation industry bellwethers incl Airbus, BoeingComac and defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin, Dasho, SAAB, Leonardo, Thales are among those participating in this year’s event.
“Overall what you should be looking for is a focus on China with the C919 making its international debut. The Singapore Airshow is a fantastic opportunity for Comac, particularly given the current situation with Boeing,” Brendan Sobie told CNBC of Sobie Aviation.
Sobie noted that this year’s air show could be significant as it can be seen as a “symbol of Asia’s recovery”.
Aerial stunts and more
The Singapore Airshow will feature the largest number of foreign flying teams this year, according to organizer Experia. The first edition of the show, one of Asia’s largest aerospace events, was first held in 2008.
The Indian Air Force’s Sarang Air Demonstration Team, which flies modified helicopters, will perform aerial acrobatics. Others include the Roulettes of the Royal Australian Air Force, the Jupiter of the Indonesian Air Force and the Black Eagles of the Republic of Korea Air Force. The United States Air Force B-52 Stratofortress will flypast on February 22, according to the organizer.
Among commercial aircraft, Airbus will present its large A350-1000 model at the air show. The French manufacturer will also have static displays of helicopters, military aircraft as well as its wide-body commercial jet, the A330neo.
His main rival Boeing will not have any passenger jets at the air show.
There won’t be many large commercial plane order announcements from airlines this year, as the focus will be mostly on defense aviation and private jets, analysts told CNBC.
“Globally, the gap with the Dubai Airshow, which has really grown and become big for order announcements, has widened in recent years, hampering Singapore’s earlier ambitions to become the world’s third largest show after Paris and Farnborough Sobie said. he told CNBC.
The event will also host private jet manufacturers, including manufacturer Cessna TextronGulfstream, Jet Aviation.
It will also feature “advanced air mobility,” an emerging mode of air transportation that can be in the form of air taxi services, cargo delivery, medical and emergency transport, and private vehicles.
Air taxis are small planes that can land and take off vertically and are mainly used for short distances.
Companies such as Hyundai’s Supernal, Boeing’s Wisk and Beta Technologies will be among those to have their flying taxis available.
Improving air traffic
The airline industry worldwide has continued to improve, with International Air Transport Association Forecast net industry profits could reach $25.7 billion in 2024, a slight improvement from $23.3 billion last year.
Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA’s senior vice president for sustainability and chief economist, told CNBC that international demand was at 88.3% of pre-Covid levels last year, largely due to a slower recovery in the Asia-Pacific region.
However, he said, “We expect to see a full recovery in 2024.”
“Longer term, the outlook continues to be bright, especially the Asia Pacific region, which will account for around half of expected global passenger traffic in 2024,” Owens said.
The recovery in Asia-Pacific travel is often seen as lagging behind other regions because traffic has yet to recover to pre-pandemic levels, Subhas Menon, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines, said in an email to CNBC.
However, “relentless demand, full flights, congested airports and the industry’s return to profitability tell a different story,” Menon said.
“Seven of the world’s busiest international routes in 2023 were to Asia», he added, stressing that half of global air travel growth this year will be in the region.
— CNBC’s Isabella Lok contributed to this story