China Economic Review
Charting China’s changing economic terrain · Since 1990
Chinese helicopter test flight
March 10, 2010
Sun Cong, deputy chief engineer of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), said that the new AC313 helicopter is the country’s first domestically developed large helicopter for civilian use.
The AC313, designed and manufactured by AVIC, has a maximum takeoff weight of 13.8 tons and can carry 27 passengers.
The new helicopter was designed for a variety of uses, including search and rescue, fighting forest fires and even assisting in fighting fires within cities.
EnglishNews.cn reported that meanwhile AVIC has announced cooperation plans with Safran and GE, aimed chiefly at boosting the country’s homemade jumbo jet program.