Photo: Courtesy of Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport

South China's Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport welcomed flight 8B167 from Sam Ratulangi International Airport in Manado, Indonesia on Tuesday. The flight, operated by ARJ21 model from Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), marked the longest commercial route made by the aircraft.

In a civil aviation tradition the "water salute" splashed on the plane. The flight route, operated by TransNusa Airline of Indonesia, links Manado with Guangzhou. Currently, three weekly round-trip flights are scheduled. 

TransNusa Airline is the first overseas airline to operate the Chinese-produced regional aircraft ARJ21. The aircraft was first delivered on December 18, 2022, marking the successful export of Chinese domestically produced jet aircraft for the first time.

The airline currently operates three ARJ21 aircraft, serving routes between Indonesian islands and its inaugural international flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

"TransNusa Airline is the first overseas airline to operate the COMAC's ARJ21 aircraft. The return of the ARJ21 aircraft to its home country marks another milestone in China-Indonesia aviation cooperation," said Yu Shihai, chief accountant of COMAC, according to the Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport.

COMAC will always be customer-centered and will strengthen partnerships to support the high-quality growth of China-Indonesia aviation collaboration, Yu noted.

ARJ21 is a new medium to short-range turbofan regional airliner developed by COMAC, as the first regional airliner independently developed by China applied with international civil aviation regulations with completely independent intellectual property rights.

Since its first delivery in China in 2015, 148 aircraft have been delivered in total to 12 customers, with more than 500,000 flight hours of safe operation and 17 million passengers transported. The safety and adaptability of the aircraft have been fully verified.

It is believed that Indonesian airlines are not the only international customers interested in Chinese-made aircraft. According to media reports, a joint statement issued by China and Laos on October 12 emphasized Laos' attention and willingness to cooperate with China's commercial aircraft.

In addition, Bruneian Airlines has also expressed interest in operating the ARJ21. Brunei's GallopAir signed a $2 billion letter of intent with COMAC last year to purchase Chinese-made aircraft.