China's homegrown C919 aircraft carries 1 mln passengers

Passengers pose for photos with the C919 aircraft after getting off the plane at Haikou Meilan International Airport in Haikou, south China's Hainan Province, on Dec. 11, 2024. (Xinhua/Yang Guanyu)

SHANGHAI, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's domestically developed large passenger aircraft, the C919, reached the milestone of having carried 1 million passengers on Thursday, said China Eastern Airlines.

The 1 millionth passenger on the C919 was on flight MU 2158 from Shanghai to Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on Thursday, operated by China Eastern Airlines.

"This is my first time flying on a domestically developed large passenger aircraft, and I feel very lucky and proud," said the lucky passenger surnamed Lin. "I hope to experience more 'Made in China' on my travels, and I wish the C919 the greatest success in the skies."

The Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China has delivered a total of 14 C919 aircraft to three leading Chinese airlines so far. China began commercial operation of the C919 on May 28, 2023.

The first C919 large passenger aircraft was delivered to China Eastern Airlines on Dec. 9, 2022. To date, China Eastern Airlines has expanded its C919 fleet to nine aircraft, operating eight regular routes, completed 6,240 commercial flights, and carried over 850,000 passengers.

China Southern Airlines and Air China received their first C919 aircraft in Shanghai on Aug. 28. Currently, China Southern Airlines has four C919 operational routes that connect Guangzhou with Shanghai, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Haikou, while Air China has four C919 operational routes that connect Beijing with Shanghai, Hangzhou, Chengdu and Wuhan.