Aviation Expo China will debut low attitude flights

The 15th Aviation Expo China is set to commence on September 25 at the China National Convention Center in Beijing, utilizing three halls spanning about 17,000 square meters.

The expo will feature five national groups and nearly 200 exhibitors from 17 countries and regions, including the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Airbus S.A.S., Boeing, Honeywell International and Bombardier Aerospace.

AVIC, as one of the organizers, will display its latest military, civil and general purpose aircrafts in its nearly 600 square meter pavilion.

"AVIC's advanced jet fighter concept will debut at the expo," said Fu Mingyao, deputy director of the company's office at AVIC, at a news conference on Monday.

"We will display J-10 and JF17 fighters, nearly 50 items in 10 categories, and visitors may use mobile phones to scan the QR code for detailed information about the planes," said Fu.

Aviation Expo China, held every two years since 1983, is the only aviation exhibition in Beijing. This year's event will first have trade days from September 25 to 27, and will then open to the public on September 28 free of charge.

The expo organizing committee will also hold a Beijing Aviation Cultural Week simultaneously. The cultural week will consist of several events including the Beijing Great Wall General Aviation Tourism Festival, according to Wu Song, the China Air Transport Association Secretary General.

The tourism festival at the Badaling airport will for the first time allow aircraft of any kind to fly at an altitude below 600 meters over Beijing’s urban area, which is normally a permanent no-fly zone.

The demonstration flights will charge 500 yuan for Cirrus Aircraft or 1,000 yuan for Eurochopter, not including the 200 yuan ticket needed to enter to the tourism festival.

Regarding the first low-altitude flights of its kind over Beijing, "The expo will contribute to the aviation industry and the general purpose of flights over Beijing," said Gao Erqing, general manager of China Promotion, one of the expo's organizers.

"The expo will make China and the other countries join hands, and establish the Beijing expo as an event used to exchange technology with the country and the world," Gao said.

Other events to be held during the expo include the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Innovation Contest and the China Aviation Science and Technology Forum.

The expo is organized by the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, China Aviation Supplies Holding Company, China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, CCPIT Sub-Council of Aviation Industries and China Promotion Ltd, Hong Kong.