China's COMAC says signs 130 orders for C919 passenger jet

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese plane maker Commercial Aircraft Corp of China Ltd (COMAC) on Tuesday said it had signed 130 new orders for its C919 passenger jet with four Chinese leasing firms, after the plane took its maiden flight earlier this year.

COMAC is leading China’s efforts to become a key player in the global civil aerospace market, threatening the dominance of US and European rivals Boeing Co and Airbus.

COMAC said last year that orders for its older ARJ-21 jet had reached 413 from 19 customers while its larger C919 passenger jet, which completed its long-delayed maiden flight in May, had 24 customers and 600 orders by June.