China’s first “independently developed” passenger jet is set to make its first commercial international flight, flying from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia on Wednesday. Comac C919 is a narrow-body aircraft similar in size to the Boeing 737. It has operated domestic routes since 2023 and has been promoted as a potential challenger to the Boeing-Airbus duopoly. The C919 is built by the state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China Ltd, commonly known as Comac. The development of C919 reflects China’s ambition to become self-sufficient in commercial aviation, a national security priority. But analysts argue building large passenger aircraft has proved far…