China-developed ARJ21 regional jetliner starts service in 3 new routes

BEIJING -- China's domestically-developed ARJ21 regional jetliners have been put into use in three new air routes, according to its developer on Tuesday.

Chengdu Airlines has started to use the ARJ21 in three new domestic regional air routes for its 2018-2019 winter and spring flight schedule, said the state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC).

These routes are Chengdu-Hengyang-Quanzhou, Chengdu-Taiyuan-Harbin, and Chengdu-Linfen-Harbin, linking the capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province with other provincial capitals and cities around the country.

Chengdu Airlines hopes to use the regional airplane model to build a cross-region air route network with trunk and regional air routes, said the airline.

To date, the ARJ21 has been used in various air routes linking 15 cities around the country.

The ARJ21 is China's first regional jetliner, with 78 to 90 seats and a range of 3,700 km. It can fly in alpine and plateau regions and is adaptable in various airport conditions.

The first ARJ21 jetliner was delivered to Chengdu Airlines on November 29, 2015. To date, the airline has received eight ARJ21 airplanes and used them to carry more than 160,000 passengers.