The Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) is going head to head with Gulfstream and Bombardier in the large-cabin bizjet market with the introduction of the Comac Business Jet. The aircraft is a rework of the 90-seat ARJ21-700 regional jet that has since been rebranded the C909. The business jet iteration will seat up to 29 people, but the standard layout is aimed at 12 to 19 passengers in a luxury cabin with plenty of cupholders. The aircraft is only certified in China but it uses a lot of Western technology, from deicing system to the engines, which are General Electric CF34-10As used on Bombardier and Embraer regional jets.
The Chinese plane doesn’t come close to its Western competitors in the range and speed categories that seem to matter most to their well-heeled customers. While the similarly sized Gulfstream G800 and Bombardier Global 8000 will go a butt-numbing 8,000 miles cruising in the high 0.8 Mach numbers, the CBJ will only hop 2,700 nm at 520 knots with a partial load of eight passengers. It is, however, certified to use China’s highest airport, Daocheng Yading Airport at 14,470 feet. There are a variety of cabin configurations offered and onboard high-speed internet is available. The price is about $38 million, depending on the cabin finish.
Good one Russ, “a butt-numbing 8,000 miles”. My little Glasair Super 2 holds 68 gallons of fuel, has a range of 1200+ miles and 6.5 hours, but my prostate’s range is not even half that.
Butt-numbing is sitting in a fighter for 14 hours and multiple aerial refuelings.
The Globals, Gulfstreams, etc allow the crew to get up, walk around, get a bite to eat, and sleep if needed.