[SH Transit] China's New Electric Plane Makes First Piloted Flight

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Shanghai-based aircraft maker COMAC completed the first piloted test flight of its domestically developed CE-25A electric plane on Saturday.

Two pilots and a flight-test engineer were aboard for the flight in Binzhou in east China's Shandong Province. The aircraft covered 60.4 kilometers and spent just under 17 minutes in the air, the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China said.

The 19-seat aircraft is designed for commercial flights between cities. COMAC lists a range of 400 kilometers, a cruising speed of 300 kilometers per hour and a maximum takeoff weight of 10 tons.

The company described the latest test as the model's first piloted "intelligent flight." The CE-25A made its uncrewed maiden flight on February 2 and has completed 19 autonomous uncrewed verification flights.

Its name combines "C" for China and COMAC with "E" for electric. The "25" refers to CCAR-25, China's airworthiness rules for transport-category aircraft, while "A" denotes the first product.

The CE-25A uses electric fans enclosed in ducts and distributed above its wings. COMAC developed the aircraft with battery maker CATL, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and other domestic partners.

At 19 seats, the electric aircraft is considerably smaller than COMAC's passenger jets already in airline service.

The C909 regional jet, previously known as the ARJ21, seats 78 to 97 in its basic version and entered commercial service in 2016. By September this year, the model had carried more than 40 million passengers.

The larger, single-aisle C919 seats 158 to 192 and began commercial service in May 2023. It opened its first international route on August 12 this year, linking Beijing with Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia.

The twin-aisle C929, intended for international routes, remains under development.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China has accepted the CE-25A's application for a type certificate. That certificate confirms that an aircraft design meets applicable airworthiness and environmental requirements.

Under the regulator's certification procedure, the process includes document reviews, witnessed tests and certification flight tests.