China's grown tired of being a low-tech manufacturer of things that other people design. So it's throwing money and resources at an industrial upgrade.
Last Tuesday, the government proudly announced one of the fruits of that effort: The country's first indigenously-designed passenger jet, the 90-seat ARJ21, will be delivered to state-owned Chengdu Airlines by year's end. There's just one problem. Of the roughly 350 additional ARJ21s on order, almost all are slated for another Chinese state-owned airline or leasing company. International airlines don't appear terribly interested.
It's hard to blame them. After 13 years of development, and probably billions in costs (the development costs haven't been disclosed), the ARJ21 remains heavier, slower and less fuel-efficient than its competition. Even worse, it won't be certified by the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority, meaning it can only fly in China and the handful of South American, Asian and African countries that recognize Chinese safety-certification standards. (Chinese state media has trumpeted the purchase of three aircraft by the Republic of the Congo.) Last fall one leading analyst concluded: "We do not consider the ARJ21 to be a viable commercial project."