China’s first C919s get critical ‘C-checks’ as European regulators watch

Three years after its maiden commercial flight as China’s flagship civilian airliner, the C919 is entering a pivotal maintenance phase, with jets across the series being progressively grounded for rigorous inspections.The results of these safety-focused “C-checks” are expected to play a role in convincing European aviation regulators of the aircraft’s long-term airworthiness.State-owned carrier China-southern-airlines" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="68524" data-entity-type="organization">China Southern Airlines finished the first C-check of its C919 fleet at the end of May. The process lasted three weeks and required 6,000 man-hours, involving thorough item-by-item inspections where some components were disconnected from the fuselage for testing, the airline said in a statement.