The first Chinese-made C919 passenger plane took off on Sunday on its first commercial flight, which represents a quantum leap for China, which seeks to compete with the West in this field.
Footage broadcast by state television channel CCTV showed Chinese Eastern Airlines flight MU9191 taking off from Shanghai's Hongqiao airport at around 10:30 a.m. (02:30 GMT).
The channel said the destination of the plane, carrying more than 130 passengers, was Beijing International Airport.
Footage broadcast by state media showed dozens of passengers huddled at Shanghai airport in preparation for boarding the white plane.
China has invested heavily in producing the aircraft domestically as it seeks self-sufficiency in key technologies.
Beijing hopes the C919 will compete with popular Western models such as the Boeing 737 Max and Airbus A320.
Huge Orders
The plane is made by China's state-owned commercial airline COMAC, but many of its components come from abroad.
Starting Monday, the C919 will fly between Shanghai and the southwestern city of Chengdu, CCTV reported.
The first C919, with a capacity of 164 passengers, was officially delivered to Eastern Airlines in December.
In January, Zhang Yujin, COMAC's deputy general manager, told the semi-official Chinese newspaper The Piper that the company had received more than 1200,919 orders for the C<>.
Zhang said at the time that COMAC plans to increase its annual production capacity to 150 aircraft within 5 years.
Asia and China in particular are key targets for Europe's Airbus and U.S. rival Boeing, which are looking to capitalize on growing demand for Chinese middle-class air travel.