The first two regional jets made in China were delivered Monday to China Southern Airlines in Harbin, the capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

The two jets are part of an order for six ERJ145 planes that China Southern placed earlier this year. The other four aircraft will be delivered before the end of January next year.

China Southern Vice President Hao Jianhua said, "The two jets will be used to fly 16 regional routes from Guangzhou beginning July 1." Guangzhou is the capital of south China's Guangdong Province.

One of the largest airlines in the country, China Southern owns more than 180 aircraft.

The 50-seat ERJ145 turbofan regional jet is produced by Harbin Embraer Aircraft Industry, a joint venture between Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer and two subsidiaries of China Aviation Industry Corporation II (AVIC II).

The JV, which involves equity investment of US$25 million, is 51 percent owned by Embraer and capable of producing up to 24 regional jets of the ERJ family each year.

Experts believe the central government's decision to develop the western part of the country and the success of Beijing's bid to host the 2008 Olympics will create opportunities for a boom in the regional aviation market.

Analysts predict China will need at least 620 regional jets--aircraft with 30 to 120 seats and a flight range of 600 to 1,200 kilometers--in the next 20 years.

The General Administration of Civil Aviation has also said that transport by regional jets will become a new growth area for the country's civil aviation industry.

Xu said domestically made small aircraft are expected to account for 70 per cent of all regional flights within two decades.

"Vast demand has brought enormous opportunities for Chinese aircraft companies," he said. But experiences of other countries suggest that no aircraft manufacturer can survive depending only on their domestic market, and the domestic aviation manufacturing industry will explore international market interest in China-made small aircraft in the future.

The State Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense has said that China will continue to give top priority to regional aircraft R&D in coming decades.

The state has already announced a series of plans to create preferential conditions for the use of regional liners.

(China Daily June 29, 2004)