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BBC Pidgin of Tuesday, 30 May 2023

Source: BBC

Made in China first passenger jet don take off

File foto File foto

China first domestically-manufactured passenger jet don successfully complete im first commercial flight.

State TV show di C919 as e dey rise into di skies above Shanghai, as e dey head to di capital Beijing early on Sunday.

Na di Commercial Aviation Corporation of China (Comac) build am in di hope of breaking di dominance of Airbus and Boeing single-aisle jets.

But di 164-seater still rely heavily on Western components, including engines and avionics.

Di Shanghai-Beijing leg of di journey, with more dan 130 passengers on board, dey completed in just under three hours.

"I dey really confident in our kontri," na so passenger Liu Peng tok. E tell Reuters news agency say C919 "go definitely get beta and beta".

"I dey feel very emotional," 21-year-old student and flight enthusiast LV Boyuan tok. E speak to Reuters for Shanghai airport before e board a normal flight to Chengdu, from wia e plan to take a return C919 flight di next day.

State-backed China Eastern Airline don order five of di planes.

Comac - wey plan to produce 150 planes annually in five years time - say e don already secure more dan 1,200 orders for di C919.

Some experts, however, say most of dis orders dey believed to be letters of intention from domestic customers.

President Xi Jinping, wey siddon for di cockpit of one mock-up C919 some years ago, don describe di project as one of China most innovative achievements.

Di C919 make im first test flight for 2017 and don undergo several similar flights since.