China Eastern's C919 verification flight on domestic route

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image : China Eastern

At 8.26 am on 1 January 2023, the C919 aircraft carried out the first flight of 2023 and the 9th cumulative verification flight mission. It flew from Shanghai Hongqiao Airport to Beijing Daxing Airport for the first time. The flight number was MU7809 and the return flight number was MU7810.

From 26 to 31 December 2022, China Eastern's C919 aircraft with the aircraft number B919A completed a total of 8 verification flights at Beijing Capital Airport, Chengdu Tianfu Airport, and Xi'an Xianyang Airport as part of the annual demonstration flight test mission.

The domestic large aircraft C919 is a brand new model. With China Eastern successfully receiving the world's first C919, the domestic large aircraft business has shifted from the "first half" of R&D and manufacturing to the "second half" of commercial operation. Focusing on the general requirements of "flying out safety, flying out ambition, flying out brand, flying out benefits", various goals and tasks of China Eastern Airlines' commercial operation are being implemented one after another.

If it is said that the domestic large aircraft has completed the airworthiness certification of the Civil Aviation Administration of China and obtained the certificate issued by the CAAC, it is a sign that the development company is qualified in the "first half", then for the airlines that are users of domestic large aircraft. On the "second half", whether it can be opened smoothly, the 100-hour empty aircraft verification flight and the verification and inspection of the verification results by the Civil Aviation Administration are the key links.

The verification flight is mainly to verify the airline's ability to safely operate the C919 aircraft, mainly including the applicability and operability of the policies, standards, regulations and procedures formulated by China Eastern Airlines in the early stage, and at the same time verify the support capabilities of the airline's various professional systems , and whether all kinds of professionals have the ability to safely operate C919, so as to ensure that airlines can provide passengers with a good flight experience after the domestic large aircraft enters commercial operation, and make C919 commercial flights safer and more efficient.

The 100-hour verification flight will last until mid-February 2023, and the takeoff and landing airports will involve 10 airports in 9 provinces and cities. On each verification flight day, the C919 aircraft will take off from Shanghai Hongqiao for Beijing Capital, Beijing Daxing, Chengdu Tianfu, Xi'an, Haikou, Qingdao, Wuhan, Nanchang, Jinan and other destinations, and return to Shanghai Hongqiao on the same day.

After the C919 completes the route verification flight, the Civil Aviation Administration of China will verify and inspect the verification results, and after confirming that China Eastern Airlines has the ability to safely operate the C919 aircraft, it will issue the corresponding operating permit.

Focusing on the "four beams and eight pillars" route network, China Eastern Airlines will strive to officially put the C919 into commercial passenger operation in the spring of 2023. At that time, C919 will appear on high-quality boutique routes in Shanghai, Beijing, Xi'an, Kunming, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenzhen and other cities. Passengers can take the lead in experiencing large domestic aircraft on these routes.