China's first large homemade passenger jet to fly in 2017

BEIJING (AP) — After years of delays, China's first large homemade passenger jetliner will take to the air for its maiden flight in the first half of this year, state media reported Monday.

State-owned aircraft maker Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China Ltd., or Comac, based in Shanghai, has nearly completed work on the 175-passenger C919, the ruling Communist Party newspaper People's Daily reported.

The jet is one of a series of initiatives launched by the party to transform China from the world's low-cost factory into a creator of profitable technology in aviation, clean energy and other fields.