Lao Airlines welcomes its first C909
April 5, 2025
The C909 (formerly known as ARJ21-700) seems to be an interim type for Lao Airlines, with the single aircraft (RPDL-34229, c/n 10156), being acquired under a strategic lease partnership with COMAC, who will soon deliver a pair of C919 aircraft.
The C909 wears full blue and white Lao Airlines markings, featuring the Champa flower, the national symbol of Laos, and is configured with 90 “spacious economy seats designed for maximum comfort,” the airline says.
The aircraft arrived at Vientiane on 31 March 2025, and was expected to make its inaugural flight on 12 April 2025.
Lao Airlines is the second export operator of the C909, joining Indonesia’s TransNusa.
Lao Airlines State Enterprise is the flag carrier of Laos, owned by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport and headquartered in Vientiane. The airline was formed In September 1976 from the merger of Royal Air Lao and Lao Air Lines. The airline began converting to ATR turboprop aircraft in the mid-1990s, and subsequently added the Airbus A320. The airline’s current fleet consists of seven ATR72s and four Airbus A320s, together with the new C909.
Lao Airlines operates domestic and international services to destinations in Cambodia, China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam, mainly operating from Wattay International Airport in Vientiane.
