Air China will buy 100 Comac C919 planes in a deal worth $10.8 billion based on list prices, boosting domestic challenger Airbus and Boeing.
The planes will be delivered between 2024 and 2031, Air China said in a filing. The Beijing-based airline, one of China’s three largest carriers, had previously ordered a handful of C919s.
The C919 competes with Boeing’s 737 Max and the Airbus A320neo, the two best-selling jets in the world. Air China currently has a fleet of nearly 500 aircraft, including 212 from the A320 family and 127 from the 737 series, according to data from tracker Planespotters.net.
Comac, such as Commercial Aircraft Corp. from China is better known, is trying to disrupt the dominance of Boeing and Airbus in commercial jet aircraft production. The order comes on the same day that privately held Suparna Airlines said it plans to replace its all-Boeing fleet with the C919.
