Chinese CRJ gets certified
01-06-2015 | 07:25 AM
#11
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From: Engines Turn or People Swim
The ARJ-21 is most likely a fine, modern airplane. Where it falls short is likely in certification and economic viability...
Will it ever be certified in the west? Does the COMAC production system for this airplane even contain the critical elements needed for western certification? Certification is not just about the airplane, it's equally about the process that designed and built the airplane.
Do they stand a chance of ever breaking even?
But the reality is that China probably considers this a starter airplane, to build their own expertise and demonstrate to the west that the airplane will work. They can do the later even if it only flies in China. They can work on western certification on later airplanes.
Will it ever be certified in the west? Does the COMAC production system for this airplane even contain the critical elements needed for western certification? Certification is not just about the airplane, it's equally about the process that designed and built the airplane.
Do they stand a chance of ever breaking even?
But the reality is that China probably considers this a starter airplane, to build their own expertise and demonstrate to the west that the airplane will work. They can do the later even if it only flies in China. They can work on western certification on later airplanes.
01-14-2015 | 10:15 AM
#12
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From: ATP, CFI etc.
Good points Rick. I always wondered what mechanism keeps foreign-certified aircraft out of the US airspace system, and to what level of certainty it operates. There are international standards all the way from the materials used in manufacturing of parts and systems to the necessary equipment on an aircraft that comes here. We see a lot of foreign aircraft here, surely they are not all made to internationally-accepted standards and US compliance as well.
01-14-2015 | 11:07 AM
#13
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From: Engines Turn or People Swim
Good points Rick. I always wondered what mechanism keeps foreign-certified aircraft out of the US airspace system, and to what level of certainty it operates. There are international standards all the way from the materials used in manufacturing of parts and systems to the necessary equipment on an aircraft that comes here. We see a lot of foreign aircraft here, surely they are not all made to internationally-accepted standards and US compliance as well.
But in order to sell the aircraft to a US airline and register them with an N-number they need FAA certification. Ditto for EU and EASA, etc, etc. FAA/EASA certification is highly reciprocal, and having one of those is the "gold standard" for world-wide commercial viability
01-14-2015 | 11:44 AM
#14
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From: ATP, CFI etc.
Yeah that all makes sense. I spent a year working on a bizjet here in the US that was remote-controlled by a foreign nation because they wanted FAA endorsement on it. The FAA was in on absolutely everything, a rigorous cert process that cannot be done anywhere but US soil. The main thing that would concern me about a Chinese regional jet coming here is compliance with international standards for safety gear (TCAS, TAWS, transponders, radios, RVSM equipment etc.) but there have to be a ton of topics that get entirely missed. There must be a lot of trust involved when they allow that to happen.
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