COMAC C919 makes first international flight to Mongolia

China’s homegrown C919 passenger jet completed its first scheduled international commercial flight on August 12, 2026, flying from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. The Air China-operated aircraft took off from Beijing Capital International Airport just after 3:00 p.m. local time, according to flight-tracking service FlightRadar24.

Air China confirmed the route will operate daily.

The narrow-body jet, built by state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), is designed to carry up to 174 passengers, rivaling Boeing’s 737 MAX and Airbus’s A320neo.

However, the C919 still relies on foreign components and lacks certification from U.S. or European regulators, restricting access to many overseas markets.

COMAC has sought to raise the jet’s profile abroad; the C919 and the smaller C909 made their Dubai Airshow debuts in November 2025.

Chinese carriers remain heavily dependent on Boeing and Airbus jets. In May 2026, Beijing confirmed an order for 200 Boeing aircraft along with engines and spare parts.

COMAC holds a substantial order backlog, mainly from Chinese airlines and leasing firms, but delivered only 15 C919s in 2025, far below its target of 75, according to Air Data News. Production is dwarfed by that of Airbus and Boeing.

Even shortages of fasteners can halt assembly, Richard Aboulafia, managing director at AeroDynamic Advisory, told CNBC in 2026.

Rob Morris, a retired aviation analyst, told CNBC that COMAC’s development and production pace is “simply too slow” to genuinely compete, adding that building reliable in-service support to match the A320 and 737 will take time and sustained operation.

The first international flight marks progress, but the path to challenging the aviation duopoly remains long.