China’s CE-25A Electric Aircraft Completes Its First Manned Flight

The Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China flew the prototype on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, from a test site in eastern China. COMAC said the aircraft operated normally and that all performance indicators met expectations.

First Piloted Flight Succeeds

The sortie took place in Binzhou, in Shandong Province.

The test lasted 57 minutes and 46 seconds, including 16 minutes and 38 seconds in the air, and covered 60.4 km, according to China Daily and CGTN.

The crew included two pilots and one flight-test engineer.

COMAC had already completed 19 unmanned autonomous flight validations after a first uncrewed flight on Feb. 2, 2026. Saturday’s sortie was the first time a crew flew the type.

Official photographs of the flight show the red-and-black prototype wearing the registration B-0EFH and COMAC markings.

The CE-25A is COMAC’s first electric commercial aircraft. CGTN reported that the name stands for China and COMAC (“C”), electric (“E”), China’s Part 25 airworthiness standards (“25”), and the first aircraft in the series (“A”).

Built for Intercity Routes

The aircraft is designed mainly for intercity commercial flights and can carry 19 passengers.

It has a maximum takeoff weight of 10 tonnes, a cruise speed of 300 km/h, a cruise altitude of 2,400 meters, and a range of 400 km.

Power comes from a distributed electric ducted-fan propulsion system mounted on the wings.

The fans are arranged along the wing, a layout visible in official photographs of the takeoff and of the in-flight passes.

The design sits in the same regional and low-altitude aviation push that has also produced cargo types such as China’s YH-1000S hybrid unmanned cargo aircraft, which made its maiden flight earlier this year.

Partners and Certification Path

COMAC developed the CE-25A with partners including Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited, or CATL, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and others.

CATL is China’s dominant battery maker, a position examined in Clash Report’s earlier coverage of U.S. startups turning to sodium-ion technology.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China has accepted COMAC’s type-certificate application for the aircraft.

A type certificate is required before the aircraft can enter commercial service, and acceptance of the application opens that formal review.

The first manned flight also places China’s electric airliner program alongside other civil first-flight projects, including NASA’s quiet supersonic X-59.