A C919 passenger aircraft (R) is parked next to an ARJ21 aircraft at Lhasa Gonggar International Airport in Lhasa, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Sept. 19, 2024. China's homegrown C919 jetliner,

Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, which designed and builds the C919, delivered China Southern's first on Aug. 28. The Guangzhou-based airline expects to receive two more by the end of this year and start operating more routes, including one from Guangzhou to Beijing Daxing International Airport.

Air China and China Southern are the second and third airlines, respectively, to add the C919 to their fleets, following China Eastern Airlines, the launch customer. China Eastern commenced commercial flights using the aircraft in May 2023 and currently operates five routes using the aircraft type, providing some 23,600 weekly seats.

A C919 aircraft receives a ceremonial water salute upon its arrival at Lhasa Gonggar International Airport in Lhasa

C919 ‘smoothly landed’ at one of the highest airports in the world in western China on Thursday ahead of a series of ‘research and development test flights’.

With 129 passengers onboard, China's first self-developed narrow-body jet C919 conducted its first commercial flight powered by sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from Beijing Daxing International Airport to Hongqiao International Airport on Thursday,