China's first domestically developed commercial aircraft, the C919 jetliner, has entered a new phase of service as China Eastern Airlines on Wednesday launched daily flights between Shanghai and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR).
The C919 flight, MU721, took off from the Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport at 08:21, carrying 157 passengers to Hong Kong, where it arrived at 10:44, marking the start of regular services on this key route.
China Eastern Airlines, which has become the first airline to operate the C919 on commercial flights to Hong Kong, intends to maintain a daily schedule of round-trip flights with the jetliner.
Meanwhile, Shanghai immigration authorities have introduced a tailored clearance procedure, designed to streamline the inspection and clearance process for passengers traveling on the C919 flights.
"We've established a special lane for passengers flying on the C919. Also, we've dispatched experienced staff to strengthen on-site policy consultations and service guidance, and utilized fast lanes to divert passenger flows, ensuring a smoother clearance process," said Dong Jianguo, head of the border inspection division under the Hongqiao Border Inspection Station.
"I'm very excited to fly on our homegrown C919 on New Year's Day. The whole clearance process was very fast. I truly feel that our country is becoming stronger and stronger," said Huang, a passenger traveling to Hong Kong.
With the inaugural commercial flight between Shanghai and Hong Kong, the C919 jetliner has marked a significant milestone by expanding its reach beyond the Chinese mainland.
"I think first of all, this C919 flight between Shanghai and Hong Kong provides a sense of stability and reliability. It conveys confidence to the market and public. There's profound significance here. The Shanghai to Hong Kong flight is an important business route. With the C919 flying regularly now, this will enhance the recognition and acceptance by domestic and foreign airlines," said Qiao Shanxun, director at the Low-altitude Economic Development Research Center of the Henan Industry and Trade Vocational College.
Hong Kong is the ninth region to welcome China Eastern's C919 fleet.
Developed by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, or COMAC, the C919 is China's first self-developed jetliner in accordance with international airworthiness standards. As of the end of 2024, COMAC had delivered a total of 16 C919 aircraft to three Chinese operators.
As the first airline to purchase the C919 airliner, China Eastern has now ordered 105 additional aircraft and will soon have the largest C919 fleet in the world.
In addition, China Southern Airlines has five regular routes using the C919, linking cities like Guangzhou, Chengdu and Haikou, while Air China handles four routes between the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and more.
The aircraft has carried out more than 1 million passenger trips since it was put into commercial operation in May 2023.
The company is also setting its eyes on the global market, with an office opened in Singapore this year. So far, it has received 1,400 orders globally.
China's C919 jetliner marks milestone with first commercial flight to Hong Kong
Leaders of the China Search and Rescue Team dispatched to Myanmar following a deadly earthquake recalled details of their difficult rescue operations.
The powerful 7.9-magnitude quake, the strongest recorded in the country in a century, rocked the Sagaing Region of Myanmar on March 28, with the epicenter close to Mandalay, the country's second-largest city.
As of April 2, the China Search and Rescue Team had successfully participated in the rescue of five survivors since arriving in the earthquake-stricken area in Myanmar. Chinese rescue forces as a whole had rescued a total of nine survivors.
Zhao Ming, head of the Chinese national rescue team, said in an interview with China Media Group that the high temperature increased the difficulty of rescue. Fortunately, the rescue team received support from the local people.
"We brought along some necessary medicines and equipment, and actively sought solutions locally. I think our actions inspired the local people, who spontaneously sent us some drinks and many electric fans. Of course, we also took strict measures on the rescue scene. The smell of decay was very strong at the earthquake site, so we asked our operation teams to conduct disinfection before leaving the site and after returning," Zhao said.
On March 31, the China Search and Rescue Team pulled out four survivors - three adult females and a girl - after 13 hours of hard work in Myanmar's seriously-hit Mandalay City.
At 00:40 March 31 local time, an adult female trapped for nearly 60 hours was rescued after over five hours of relentless work, marking the first survivor rescued by the team in the city.
Without pausing for rest, the rescuers immediately moved to another nearby site at the Sky Villa apartment complex.
Recalling details of the rescue mission, Li Guangnai, deputy leader of the China Search and Rescue Team, said that effective search and rescue methods improved efficiency at the dangerous and complicated structure.
"When we rescued the second and third survivors, they were in Block C of the apartment, which collapsed like a pancake. After arriving at the scene, the rescuers went to the roof according to the direction given by the survivors' family members. When we used the radar life detector on the roof, we did not find them. So we created absolute silence by suspending all rescue operations and then knocked on the floor with stones to transmit the sound to see if there was any response from the trapped people. We knocked continuously and received a response from inside. Through the sound, we quickly confirmed the approximate location. According to the evaluation of the experts on the scene, we used a method of top-to-bottom demolition for the rescue," Li said.
At 05:37 on the day, a 5-year-old girl who was buried in Block C of Sky Villa was rescued. Li said the girl was curled up in fear in the corner of the wardrobe when being found, protecting her head with a teddy bear.
About an hour later, a woman who was buried in the same rubble was successfully rescued. She was 26 weeks pregnant. At around 07:15, a 29-year-old woman trapped in Block A of Sky Villa was pulled out of the debris. She was trapped under the broken beam on the sixth floor for 65 hours.
Another survivor was miraculously pulled out alive from beneath the rubble of a collapsed hotel in central Myanmar's disaster-hit Mandalay City on April 2. The male survivor was said to be in a stable condition after spending nearly 125 hours buried among the ruins of the Golden Country Hotel building.
Zhao said that after the 72-hour "golden window" for rescue, the China Search and Rescue Team would begin to cooperate with local authorities to carry out diagnosis and treatment of the injured and disaster assessment.
"As the possibility of finding survivors in the disaster area decreases, our team can assist the local area in some other work. For example, today we officially set up an outpatient clinic on the street with the permission of the local government. Our earthquake engineering experts can conduct emergency assessments on some buildings," he said.
Chinese rescue team recalls details in Myanmar earthquake rescue missions
