China’s First Piston Single Completes Flight Testing

Chinese media last month reported that the country’s first homegrown private aircraft has completed its final test flights and will soon go into mass production. According to published reports, the Xiaoying, or “Eaglet,” 500 made some 339 flights over the past nine months as part of its flight-test program, which was conducted in Xian. Some 24 examples of the new type are expected too be manufactured by the end of 2005. The general-purpose piston single is comparable in performance to similar western aircraft. Already, plans exist for a growth version, the -800, specifications for which were not available. According to published reports, the airplane was jointly developed and manufactured by Shijiazhuang Aircraft Industry Co., Ltd., under China Aviation Industry Corporation II (AVIC II), the First Aircraft Institute of China Aviation Industry Corporation I (AVIC I) and China Civil Aviation Flight University.