China, Europe pledge closer aviation ties ahead of landmark jet launch

Chinese and European aviation regulators said Thursday they will forge closer ties over aircraft manufacturing and certification as the global industry turns its eyes to China ahead of the maiden flight of the Chinese-built C919 jet. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) are holding a landmark meeting on aviation in Shanghai as China's government pushes for a bigger role in the global aviation market. The first flight in May of the C919 jet, built by Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), will mark a major step for Beijing. The government hopes the jet will compete with Boeing Co and Airbus SE for a slice of global jet sales worth $2t over the next 20 years. A big hurdle, though, is that Europe and the United States have yet to certify a domestically built Chinese passenger plane and do not currently recognise Chinese certification procedures, limiting the countries to which China can sell its planes. "The ever closer ties between the Chinese and European aviation industries have created good conditions and a solid foundation to deepen cooperation on aircraft manufacturing and certification," CAAC administrator Feng Zhenglin said. Another CAAC official said closer ties would "increase the global influence and competitiveness of Chinese aviation".<br/>