China’s homegrown C919 passenger jet completed its first scheduled international commercial flight on August 12, landing in Ulaanbaatar, the Mongolian capital, reports Caixin.

The inaugural overseas service marks a milestone for COMAC as it works to expand the narrow-body jet’s presence abroad and build an international operating record.

Air China Flight CA723 departed Beijing Capital International Airport and arrived in Ulaanbaatar that evening. The daily route spans about 1,150 kilometers and takes roughly one hour and 40 minutes. In the previous week, the service had been operated by Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, according to aviation-tracking platforms including VariFlight.

Prototypes of China’s next-generation CR450 bullet train have completed a 600,000-kilometer operational test, reports Caixin. The move brings the world’s fastest train a step closer to commercial service.

Two prototypes—the CR450AF and CR450BF manufactured by CRRC—have completed the 600,000-kilometer operational test, a local railway bureau official told Caixin. On August 5, state-owned operator China State Railway said that the trains had finished tests on a section of the Chongqing-Xiamen high-speed railway and would complete the remaining testing mileage on the Xiong’an-Shangqiu high-speed railway. The prototypes have yet to undergo a maximum-speed test, according to the local railway bureau source.

The milestone clears the way for final inspection and certification of the train, which is designed to operate at around 400 kilometers per hour (kph) and could eventually shift the competitive landscape between rail and air travel on major domestic routes.

Chinese state-owned energy companies are rapidly expanding sustainable aviation fuel production, reports Caixin. The state-backed buildout that could tighten global supplies of a key raw material heavily relied on by European airlines.

Driven by national strategic priorities, China announced 16 new sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) projects in the first half of 2026, compared with four in the rest of the world. State-owned enterprises including Sinopec and China National Petroleum Corp accounted for nearly half of the new developments, marking a shift in a sector previously led by private refiners.

The expansion could lead to a global shortage of used cooking oil by 2028, disrupting supply chains for European markets that depend on Chinese exports to meet aviation emissions requirements. Used cooking oil, or UCO, accounts for 80% of the feedstock used in current commercial SAF production. China supplies nearly half of the world’s UCO, making it a pivotal source for the global aviation fuel transition.

China’s first high-altitude variant of the C919 narrowbody jet has completed its maiden test flight at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, reports the South China Morning Post. The move marks a step forward in the home-grown aircraft’s challenge to Boeing and Airbus.

Derived from the standard C919 platform, the specialized variant features a shortened fuselage and enhanced systems engineered for operations in high-altitude regions. The plane will undergo comprehensive airworthiness certification and environmental adaptability trials across various high-plateau airports before entering commercial service.

Its manufacturer, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac), signed a framework agreement in 2023 with Tibet Airlines to develop the high-altitude model. A year later it locked in a deal with the airline for 40 C919 high-altitude variants.

The Chinese-made C919 passenger jet will make its first scheduled international flights in August, reports the South China Morning Post. The move marks a significant milestone for the country’s ambitions to become self-sufficient in aerospace.

The narrowbody aircraft, operated by national carrier Air China, will start flying between Beijing and the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar on August 12, according to state news agency Xinhua. There will be one round-trip flight every day.

The C919 has already been making regular commercial flights to and from Hong Kong, its first non-mainland destination.