As part of the 2023 Taiyuan International General Aviation Expo, an aerial display takes place at Yaocheng Airport from Sept 28-30. [Photo by Ruan Yang for China Daily]

General Aviation Expo brings together industry experts from across the world to Shanxi's capital city

Insiders of the general aviation industry gathered at an expo in Shanxi in late September to identify business opportunities in the North China province.

The 2023 Taiyuan International General Aviation Expo was held from Sept 27-30 in the Shanxi provincial capital city of Taiyuan.

General aviation refers to all the aviation activities other than scheduled flights operated by commercial airlines or activities conducted by the military. Its operations include chartered flights, package delivery, emergency rescue, aerial survey and aerial sports, as well as operations relating to forestry and agriculture.

A highlight of the expo was a forum held on the first day, which functioned as a networking platform for information sharing and business matchmaking.

At the forum, Shanxi's general aviation operators, local governments, research institutions and universities signed 12 strategic partnership agreements.

But for the general public, the most eye-catching event was an air show held from Sept 28-30.

Five international teams from countries including Sweden, Australia and South Africa performed aerobatic stunts at Taiyuan's Yaocheng Airport.

In addition to the air show, visitors were treated to a number of interactive events relating to the popularization of science and technologies, and knowledge about aircraft and flights.

The interactive events were held at the Shanxi Aviation Industry Comprehensive Exhibition Hall. Covering a floor space of about 6,000 square meters, the hall is Shanxi's first facility to offer integrated and interactive experiences relating to aviation.

At this hall, visitors were offered opportunities to operate simulators of the C919 – the China-made large aircraft – and the J-20 fighter, as well as other experiences like parachuting and aerial fighting with the assistance of such technologies as artificial intelligence, augmented reality and naked-eye 3D.

But for professional visitors, the key attraction at the expo were the various exhibits of products, technologies and solutions.

Shanxi province used the event to showcase its fast-growing general aviation industry. There was a dedicated show for 11 cities in the province to display their developments and economies relating to the aviation industry.

Members of the public inspect a helicopter on display at the expo. [Photo by Ruan Yang for China Daily]

In recent years, Shanxi has made rapid and steady progress in the general aviation industry. It has developed a complete industry chain ranging from research and development, manufacturing, sales and operations to exhibition and vocational training. And the general aviation industry in Shanxi has diversified application scenarios that include logistics, tourism, agriculture, forestry, aerial survey and emergency rescue.

Shanxi is one of the national pioneers to use general aviation for short-distance passenger transportation as an effective supplement to the scheduled medium-to-long-range flight services.

Since 2019, Shanxi's general aviation operators have opened 12 air routes for intraprovincial passenger transportation and five short-distance routes to link cities in neighboring provinces.

There are also sightseeing tourist flights for such famed destinations as the Taihang Mountains and the ancient city of Pingyao.

Shanxi has developed a general aviation manufacturing industry with local features. The province has formed four general aviation industry clusters in the cities of Taiyuan, Datong, Jinzhong and Changzhi. Research efforts into hybrid drones and general aviation avionics systems have continued to increase.

In the field of raw material R&D and manufacturing, Taiyuan Iron & Steel Group has become a major carbon fiber supplier to the nation's aerospace industry. Enterprises such as SPIC Shanxi Aluminum are developing pitch-based carbon fibers, aluminum-magnesium alloy materials and titanium alloy materials to be applied to aviation airborne products.

An official responsible for the general aviation industry in Shanxi said the province will continue to boost the sector's development by strengthening infrastructure construction, offering easier market access and attracting and training more professionals for the industry.

"Our aim is to develop into a demonstration province for China's general aviation industry, through mobilizing all the possible resources and innovating in policies," the official said.

Li Xuelin contributed to this story.