Joy Air, AVIC agree on purchase of 60 planes

Chinese airplane manufacturer AVIC inked a deal with airline company Joy Air for the purchase of 60 Xinzhou passenger aircraft Friday in Beijing.

The largest order AVIC Xi'an Aircraft Industry Co., Ltd. ever had for Xinzhou aircraft home and abroad was separated into 30 for confirmed purchase and 30 for order of intent.

Since the first Xinzhou aircraft was delivered in 2005, AVIC has received orders for over 270 such planes from 27 customers in 17 countries. To date, nearly 100 Xinzhou aircraft are in active service in 260 flight lines in Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia and South Pacific nations.

"We hope Xinzhou provides first-class service to passengers. And we hope more Chinese travel on our home-made aircraft," said Lin Zuoming, president of AVIC.

AVIC, abbreviated for Aviation Industry Corporation of China, is a state-owned conglomerate with businesses covering transport aircraft, engine, helicopter, avionics and systems, as well as aviation research.

Based in northwest Chinese city of Xi'an, Joy Air has been in service since 2009. By the end of July, Joy Air has carried over 1.12 million passengers on 31 routes with a fleet of eight Xinzhou aircraft.

The Xinzhou-60 aircraft is the only regional jet in commercial service that is designed and manufactured by China.