Xi Jinping meets with representatives of airliner C919 project team, visits achievement exhibition, stresses mobilizing national resources, calls for persistent endeavors to make more breakthroughs in China's high-end equipment manufacturing Han Zheng attends

BEIJING, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, president of the People's Republic of China and chairman of the Central Military Commission, met with representatives of the airliner C919 project team and visited the achievement exhibition on September 30 at the Great Hall of the People, during which he gave high praises to the important staged progress scored by the team of the C919 research and manufacture project. Xi stressed, having Chinese airliners fly in the sky embodies the will of our country, the dream of our nation and the expectations of our people. We must give full play to the strength of a new system for mobilizing resources nationwide, put safety first and give top priority to quality, and make consistent and persistent efforts to achieve greater breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields. He also called for efforts to scale up production and push forward serialization, make solid progress in building China into a manufacturer of quality, and strive to build a modern socialist country in all respects and realize the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.

Han Zheng, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and vice premier of the State Council, attended.

At around 10:30 a.m., Xi and other leaders arrived at the East Hall of the Great Hall of the People, drawing enthusiastic applause. He had a cordial exchange with those present and had a photo taken with them. He praised the representatives as the backbones of the country and heroes. "Thanks to your efforts, great achievements have been made in the large aircraft project," Xi said. We should focus on core technologies in key fields and continue to work together to tackle bottleneck problems. We must put safety and reliability first and eliminate all potential hazards. We must do a good job in the large aircraft sector.

Xi, with others, then visited an exhibition showcasing the achievements of the C919 trunk jetliner project at the Hebei Hall of the Great Hall of the People. They were briefed on the aircraft's design, manufacturing, tests, trial flights, airworthiness and others. Xi would once in a while stop to watch a particular exhibit and inquire about information in detail.

He stressed that on the journey to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we need to take a long-term strategic perspective, set practical goals in light of the actual conditions, and choose the right direction of research. We must fulfill our goals, one by one and year on year. We must be ambitious on the path to the summit of science and technology.

Ding Xuexiang, Liu He, Wang Yong and He Lifeng attended.

The C919 is China's first self-developed trunk jetliner in accordance with international airworthiness standards, and owns independent intellectual property rights. The project was approved in 2007 and the C919 airliner accomplished its maiden flight in 2017. After completing all airworthiness certification, the C919 received the type certificate issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China in September 2022. The first aircraft will be delivered by the end of 2022. The fact that the C919 was successfully developed and received its type certificate marks that China is capable of researching and developing world-class trunk jetliners independently, and it represents a major milestone in the development of the country's large aircraft sector. Over the past 15 years, China has successfully blazed a development path that features indigenous design and systematic integration, attracts global public bidding and helps increase the proportion of domestic technologies. The country has also cultivated a team of talents in the large aircraft sector who uphold firm convictions, are willing to devote themselves, have the courage to make breakthroughs and compete in tough battles and have an international vision, achieving fruitful results and gaining valuable experience.