China’s effort to place its home-built commercial jets on the world stage has faced another setback after VietJet Air, the only major non-Chinese airline operating a COMAC ARJ21 (marketed as C909), ended operations with the aircraft after just six months of service.
The Vietnamese low-cost carrier’s wet-lease agreement with Chengdu Airlines, which included two ARJ21 aircraft and Chinese flight crews, expired on October 18, 2025, and was not renewed. VietJet had deployed the aircraft on short domestic routes such as Hanoi–Con Dao, making the partnership one of the most closely watched international tests for COMAC’s regional jet program.
VietJet cited high operating costs, dependence on foreign crews, and limited maintenance support as reasons for ending the deal. There were no reports of safety or performance issues, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Transnusa of Indonesia still operating the jets.c 909.
I can’t understand why would Vietnam & Indonesia want to operate the C909 when both Airbus and Boeing have much more efficient & reliable options available, that comes with very attractive financing avenues. An airline cannot operate with less than the most reliable options in terms of operations, maintenance & revenue. Relying solely on purchase price is the last thing an airline would consider. There must be many obvious reasons why most airlines would operate either Boeing or Airbus planes
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