China’s domestically produced aircraft, the ARJ21, successfully completed its longest commercial flight on Tuesday, landing at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport after departing from Sam Ratulangi International Airport in Manado, Indonesia.
This marks the inaugural flight of TransNusa Airlines between Manado and Guangzhou, making it the first international flight to China operated by a foreign airline using Chinese-made aircraft. The flight was welcomed with the highest aviation honor, the “water salute.”
Flights on the route from Manado are currently scheduled to arrive in Guangzhou every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 22:55. Return flights from Guangzhou are set to depart every Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday at 00:05, with plans to transition to daily service by the end of November. All flights will be operated using the ARJ21 aircraft, designated with flight codes 8B167/8B168.
Since December 2022, TransNusa has received three ARJ21 aircrafts from COMAC and has launched eight routes utilizing the ARJ21.