Bradley Perrett covered China, Japan, South Korea and Australia. He is a Mandarin-speaking Australian.
Before joining Aviation Week in 2006 he was a macroeconomics, politics and aerospace journalist with Reuters. Perrett holds a bachelor’s degree in law from Macquarie University, Sydney. He left Aviation Week in 2020.
The first orders for the Comac C919 aircraft total no more than 55, a surprisingly small figure that includes a mere five for each of China's big state airlines. China Southern, Air China and China Eastern will also take options on only 15 each—suggesting an extraordinarily low degree of commitment to a project on which China is pinning its future as a commercial aircraft builder.
Hainan Airlines has joined the line-up of carriers that will place the first orders for the Comac C919 airliner this week, while banking giant ICBC also negotiates to buy the aircraft. Contracts from China’s three biggest airlines, General Electric Commercial Aviation Services (Gecas) and China Development Bank are also expected among the batch of first orders, which will total about 100, or possibly 120, and be announced at Airshow China this week in Zhuhai.
BEIJING — Shanghai-based space contractor SAST says it is progressing so smoothly with development of the Long March 6 light satellite launcher that the rocket may beat its larger cousin, the Long March 5, into service. Long March 6 will be able to loft 1,000-kg. (2,200-lb.) payloads to an orbit of 600 km. (370 mi.) altitude, SAST Vice President Meng Guang says, briefing a delegation from the U.S. space industry on the company’s progress.
