Commercial Aircraft Corp. (COMAC) presented its new creation to the world on November 2 — the C919 jet. The single-aisle plane, which can seat up to 168 passengers and has a range of up to 5,555 kilometers (3,452 miles), was unveiled in Shanghai. "The rollout of the first C919 marks a significant milestone in the development of China's first indigenous aircraft," said COMAC chief Jin Zhuanglong.

About 4,000 government officials and other guests were present at the ceremony that took place at a hangar near Shanghai's Pudong International Airport. A small truck towed the 39-meter-long plane out of a cavernous building decorated with an enormous Chinese flag.

Development of the twin-engine C919 started in 2008. Plans called for a first flight in 2014 and for it to enter service in 2016, but those targets were pushed back due to production delays. The aircraft is now expected to enter service in 2019 at the earliest.

Although the C919 is made in China, many of the plane's critical systems such as engines and avionics are being supplied by either foreign firms or joint ventures between Chinese companies and Western manufacturers.

China is one of the world's biggest aviation markets, with Boeing projecting the country's total demand for civilian aircraft over the next two decades to be worth over $800 billion. Boeing and Airbus, the European aviation giant, have long eyed the lucrative market and want to position themselves as the main suppliers of planes to China.

However, China's leadership has been striving to transform the country from being the world's factory of low-cost goods into a manufacturer of high-tech products. The development of the C919 is part of these restructuring efforts and helps the country ascend the product value chain and become a maker of high-value items.

The single-aisle C919 is expected to compete with Airbus' A320 and Boeing's 737 for market share, not only in China but also in other markets. The plane's maker, COMAC, says it has already received orders for 517 of its jets from 21 customers. While most of the orders come from China-based carriers, there are also a few from foreign ones.

The unveiling of the C919 came just days after Airbus signed contracts with Chinese partners on the delivery of 100 A320 passenger planes and 30 A330 aircraft worth €15.4 billion ($17 billion). The deals were signed during German Chancellor Angela Merkel's recent visit to China.