Air China is expected to become the world's first carrier of the domestically-developed widebody aircraft C929, after the airline signed a framework agreement with aircraft manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corp of China during the Zhuhai Airshow, which is being held from Nov 12 to 17.

The C929 jet, which has 280 seats and a flying range of up to 12,000 kilometers, is currently in its preliminary design stage.

Additionally, Air China launched two single-aisle C919 aircraft and 31 C909 regional jets for commercial operation; both models were developed by COMAC.

zhuwenqian@chinadaily.com.cn