China's COMAC is expanding production facilities for its homegrown C919 jets in Shanghai, according to one of the project contractors, as the state-owned planemaker ramps up manufacturing to fulfill hundreds of new orders.
The factory expansion comes as Air China and China Southern Airlines, two of the country's largest carriers, placed orders amounting to 100 C919 jets each, expanding commercial operations of the plane amid ambitions by Beijing to take market share from industry leaders Airbus and Boeing.
The C919 has so far gained more than 1,000 orders, but mostly from Chinese airlines and aircraft lessors including China Eastern Airlines, the maiden user of the jet, which currently operates five C919 on three domestic routes.
