China will showcase its domestic jetliner at the Singapore Airshow. Here’s what else to expect

SINGAPORE
—
China
is
gearing
up
to
showcase
its
narrow-body
passenger
jet
to
a
global
audience
for
the
first
time
at
the

Singapore
Airshow.

Touted
as
a
competitor
to
Boeing’s
737
and
the
Airbus
320,
the
Comac
C919
is
quickly
turning
out
to
be
one
of
the
most
anticipated
features
at
this
year’s
event.

The
commercial
aircraft
was
developed
by
the
Commercial
Aircraft
Corporation
of
China,
or
Comac,
and
certified
by
the
Civil
Aviation
Administration
of
China
in
September
2022.

“Flying
for
the
first
time
at
the
Singapore
Airshow,
is
the
C919,
a
narrow-body
airliner
developed
by
Chinese
aircraft
manufacturer
Comac,”
Singapore
Airshow
organizer
and
manager

Experia
Events
said
in
a
statement.

The
air
show,
held
from
Feb.
20
to
25
this
year,
is

typically
attended

by
tens
of

thousands,
including
military
delegations
and
aviation
enthusiasts,
and
will
be
open
to
the
public.

Aerospace
and
aviation
industry
bellwethers
including


Airbus,


Boeing,
Comac
and
defense
contractors
such
as


Lockheed
Martin,


Dassault,


SAAB,


Leonardo,


Thales
are
among
those
participating
at
this
year’s
event.

“Generally
what
to
look
for
is
a
focus
on
China
with
the
C919
making
its
international
debut.
The
Singapore
Airshow
is
a
fantastic
opportunity
for
Comac
particularly
given
the
current
situation
with
Boeing,”
Brendan
Sobie of
Sobie
Aviation
told
CNBC.

Sobie noted
that
this
year’s
air
show
could
be
significant
as
it
can
be
seen
as
“a
symbol
of
Asia’s
recovery.”

The
Singapore
Airshow
will
feature
the
largest
number
of
foreign
flying
teams
this
year,
according
to
organizer
Experia.
The
first
edition
of
the
exhibition,
one
of
Asia’s
biggest
aerospace
events,
was
first
held
in
2008.

The
Indian
Air
Force’s
Sarang
aerial
display
team,
which
flies
modified
helicopters,
will
be
performing
aerial
acrobatics.
Others
include
the
Royal
Australian
Air
Force’s
Roulettes,
the
Indonesian
Air
Force’s
Jupiter
and
the
Republic
of
Korea
Air
Force’s
Black
Eagles.
The
United
States
Air
Force’s
B-52
Stratofortress
will
make
a
flypast
on
Feb.
22,
according
to
the
organizer.

Among
commercial
aircrafts,

Airbus
will
be
showcasing
its
large
widebody A350-1000
model
at
the
air
show.
The
French
manufacturer
will
also
have
static
displays of
helicopters,
military
aircraft
as
well
as
its
wide-body
commercial
jet,
the
A330neo.

Its
key
rival


Boeing
will
not
be
featuring
any
passenger
jets
at
the
air
show.

There
won’t
be
many
announcements
of
big
commercial
plane
orders
by
airlines
this
year,
as
the
focus
will
mostly
be
on
defense
aviation
and
private
jets,
analysts
told
CNBC.

“On
a
global
level,
the
gap
with
the
Dubai
Airshow,
which
has
really
grown
and
become
big
for
order
announcements,
has
widened
over
the
last
several
years,
thwarting
Singapore’s
earlier
aspirations
to
become
the
third
major
global
show
after
Paris
and
Farnborough,”
Sobie
told
CNBC.

The
event
will
also
host
private
jet
makers
including
Cessna
maker


Textron,
Gulfstream,
Jet
Aviation.

It
will
also
feature
“advanced
air
mobility,”
an
emerging
mode
of
air
transportation
which
can
be
in
the
form
of
air
taxi
services,
cargo
delivery,
medical
and
emergency
response
transportation
and
private
vehicles.

Air
taxis
are
small
planes
that
can
land
and
take
off
vertically,
and
are
mostly
used
for
short
distances.

Companies
such
as
Hyundai-owned
Supernal,
Boeing-owned
Wisk
and
Beta
Technologies
will
be
among
those
featuring
their
flying
taxis.
 

The
airline
industry
globally
has
continued
to
improve,
with
the

International
Air
Transport
Association
predicting
industry
net
profits
could
reach
$25.7
billion
in
2024,
a
slight
improvement
from
$23.3
billion
last
year.

Marie
Owens
Thomsen,
IATA’s
senior
vice
president
for
sustainability
and
chief
economist
told
CNBC
that
international
demand
was
at
88.3%
of
pre-Covid
levels
last
year,
largely
due
to
the
slower
recovery
of
the
Asia-Pacific
region.

Still,
she
said,
“We
expect
to
see
full
recovery
in
2024.” 

“Longer
term,
the
outlook
continues
to
be
bright,
especially
the
Asia
Pacific
region,
which
will
account
for
about
half
of
the
expected
global
passenger
traffic
in
2024,”
Owens
said.

Asia-Pacific
travel
recovery
is
often
seen
as
a
laggard
compared
to
other
regions
because
traffic
has
yet
to
bounce
back
to
pre-pandemic
levels,
said
Subhas
Menon,
director
general
of
the
Association
of
Asia
Pacific
Airlines,
in
an
email
to
CNBC.

However,
“unabating
demand,
full
flights,
congested
airports
and
the
industry’s
return
to
profitability
tells
a
different
story,”
Menon
said.

“Seven
of
the
world’s
busiest
international
routes
in
2023
were
in
Asia,”
he
added,
highlighting
that
half
of
global
air
travel
growth
this
year
will
be
in
the
region.

—
CNBC’s
Isabella
Lok
contributed
to
this
story