China Eastern Airlines flight MU9191 took off from Shanghai's Hongqiao Airport at around 10:30 a.m. local time (02:30 GMT), according to footage from state broadcaster CCTV.

On board the plane, bound for Beijing Capital International Airport, are 130 passengers.

The plane is scheduled to land around 13:10 p.m. local time (05:10 GMT), according to the airline's website.

Images broadcast by state media showed dozens of passengers gathered at Shanghai airport to admire the white aircraft with clean lines.

They then boarded the aircraft which, after circulating on the runway, took off.

All passengers received red boarding passes and will be able to enjoy a glitzy "themed meal" on board to celebrate the event, CCTV said.

China, which is seeking to become self-sufficient in the technology sector, has invested heavily in the production of this first Chinese-designed airliner.

Growing demand for flights

Beijing hopes the C919 can compete with popular foreign aircraft such as the Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A320.

The aircraft is built by the state-owned Comac enterprise, but many parts of the craft come from other countries.

The C919 will be mobilized from Monday for China Eastern Airlines' regular routes from Shanghai to the south city of Chengdu, CCTV reported.

"In the future, most passengers will be able to choose to travel on large domestically designed aircraft," CCTV described.

The first model of this narrow-body aircraft that can carry 164 passengers was officially delivered to the Chinese airline in December 2022.

Zhang Yujin, deputy general manager of Comac, told the government-backed The Paper in January that the company had received more than 1,200 orders for its device.

The state-owned automaker planned to increase its annual production capacity to 150 models within five years, Zhang Yujin said at the time.

Asia, and China in particular, are priority targets for Europe's Airbus and US-based Boeing, which are seeking to capitalize on growing demand for flights from a sizeable middle class.

In April, Airbus announced it would double its production capacity in China and signed an agreement to build a second assembly line in Tianjin (northeast) for the A320.

Tianjin's first assembly site opened in 2008 and produces four A320s per month. A rate that Airbus hopes to increase to six per month by the end of 2023.

© 2023 AFP