- The first Sino-Brazilian ERJ145 regional jet aircraft
passed a 10-minute flight trial Tuesday in Harbin, capital of northeast
China's Heilongjiang Province.
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- The 50-seat turbofan aircraft was assembled by the Harbin-based
Embraer Aircraft Industry Co., Ltd, a joint venture established in January
2003 between China's Hafei Aviation Industry Co., Ltd and Empresa Brasileira
de Aeronautica S.A (Embraer) of Brazil, the world's fourth largest aircraft
manufacturer that entered China in2000.
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- The joint venture was capable of producing up to 24 aircraft
annually, and would produce eight jets in 2004, said Cui Xuewen, president
of the joint venture and the Harbin-based Hafei Group.
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- The newly assembled ERJ145 is equipped with a Rolls Royce
engine and has a range of 2,600 kilometers, according to Cui. "Parts
of the second jet in the pipeline will be produced in China through subcontract,"
he said.
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- International collaboration in the design and manufacturing
of commercial aircraft would help China's aviation industry adapt to new
market demands, said Zhang Yanzhong, general manager of the China Aviation
Industry Corporation II (AVIC II), at Tuesday's roll-out ceremony of the
new jet.
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- AVIC II is a state-owned enterprise responsible for the
research and development of transport, general, training and military aircraft
and helicopters. It owns 81 enterprises, including the Hafei Group, and
has registered capital of 53 billion yuan (6.7 billion US dollars).
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- The ERJ series is a new generation of turbofan regional
jets that were first put on the market by Embraer in 1996. They have taken
the lion's share of the global aviation market, with 700 aircraft already
delivered to end users.
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- Market surveys conducted among Chinese airlines show
regional aircraft enjoy rosy market prospects as more air routes have been
opened between Chinese cities.
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- It is estimated that in the next 20 years, domestic demand
for regional aircraft will exceed 600 and international market demand will
surpass 4,000.
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- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/other/count.php?id=130543
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