Air China (CA/CCA) is one of the three largest airlines in China, and is third-largest in terms of fleet size behind China Southern (CZ/CSN) with 675 aircraft and China Eastern (MU/CES) with 638 aircraft.
The airline was formed in 1988 following the Chinese government’s decision to split the divisions of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC Airlines) into separate airlines, one of which was Air China. The airline was initially given chief responsibility for intercontinental flights, but developed a more diverse range of operations as time proceeded.
The Air China fleet
As of April 2024, Air China has an active fleet of 491 aircraft, comprising a mix of narrowbodies, widebodies and regional jets and is on average 9.3 years old. Let’s take a look at the fleet and identify the newest and oldest aircraft in service.
| Aircraft type | Number in fleet |
|---|---|
| Airbus A320neo | 51 |
| Airbus A321neo | 30 |
| Airbus A319-100 | 30 |
| Airbus A320-200 | 40 |
| Airbus A321-200 | 61 |
| Airbus A330-200 | 22 |
| Airbus A330-300 | 27 |
| Airbus A350-900 | 30 |
| Comac ARJ21-700 | 25 |
| Boeing 737 MAX 8 | 21 |
| Boeing 737-700 | 17 |
| Boeing 737-800 | 88 |
| Boeing 747-400 | 2 |
| Boeing 747-8 | 5 |
| Boeing 777-300ER | 28 |
| Boeing 787-9 | 14 |
Widebodies
The newest widebody jet in the Air China fleet is B-32F1. This Airbus A350-941 was built in July 2023 as MSN 632. Based in Shanghai (PVG), this aircraft operates daily flights to a mix of domestic and international destinations including Guangzhou (CAN), London (LHR), Singapore (SIN) and Munich (MUC). Air China has a total fleet of 30 Airbus A350 aircraft as of April 2024.
The oldest widebody aircraft in service with Air China is B-2445, a 30-year-old Boeing 747-4J6 built in February 1994. Based in Beijing (PEK), this aircraft typically operates one return flight per day on high density domestic routes from Beijing to Shenzhen (SZX), Guangzhou (CAN), Air China has two active Boeing 747-400 series aircraft as of April 2024, the other is B-2447, which operates similar routes. In addition to the -400 series, Air China also operates a fleet of 5 Boeing 757-89L aircraft which are deployed on a mix of domestic and international routes.
Narrowbodies
The newest Airbus narrowbody
The newest narrowbody jet in the Air China fleet is B-32FK, an Airbus A320-271neo built in December 2023. Based in Chengdu (CTU), this aircraft operates frequent flights to domestic destinations including Nanning (NNG), Zhuhai (ZUH) and Nanchang (KHN). This aircraft is the newest of 51 A320neo aircraft joining Air China recently, 4 of which were built in late 2023.The airline also has a fleet of 30 Airbus A321neo, the newest of which was built in June 2022.
The oldest Airbus narrowbody
The oldest Airbus-built narrowbody jet at Air China is B-6031, a 20-year-old Airbus A319-131 built in January 2004. This aircraft operates daily flights between airports including Hangzhou (HGH), Kunming (KMG), Changzhou (CZX) and Yancheng (YNZ).
The newest Boeing narrowbody
In addition to Airbus narrowbodies, Air China also operates a mixed fleet of 126 Boeing narrowbody aircraft. The newest of these is B-233Y, a Boeing 737 MAX 8 built in June 2023. This aircraft is based in Beijing (PEK), and flies daily to destinations including Changsha (CSX), Shenyang (SHE), Zhuhai (ZUH), and Lanzhou (LHW).
The oldest Boeing narrowbody
The oldest active Boeing narrowbody aircraft in service with Air China is B-5043, a Boeing 737-79L built in May 2003. This is the oldest of 17 Boeing 737-700 series aircraft operated by the airline, and is currently based in Beijing (PEK). It flies daily to destinations including Guiyang (KWE), Yantai (YNT) and Jingdezhen (JDZ). In addition to the -700 series, Air China also utilizes a fleet of 88 Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
Regional jets
Air China operates a fleet of 25 Comac ARJ21-700 regional jets. The newest of these is B-652N, built in August 2022 as MSN 194. This aircraft operates daily flights which are typically under 2 hours in duration. Airports the aircraft serves include Hohhot (HET), Tongliao (TGO) and Xilinhot (XIL).
The oldest of the ARJ21 fleet is B-605U, which was built in June 2020.
Have you flown on any of these aircraft? Let us know in the comments.
Cover photo: Haozhe Peng, JetPhotos.
![An example full flight summary response from the Flightradar24 API: { "data": [ { "fr24_id": "0987654321", "flight": "SK1415", "callsign": "SAS1415", "operated_as": "SAS", "painted_as": "SAS", "type": "A20N", "reg": "SE-DOY", "orig_icao": "ESSA", "orig_iata": "ARN", "datetime_takeoff": "2023-01-27T05:15:22", "runway_takeoff": "12R", "dest_icao": "EKCH", "dest_iata": "CPH", "dest_icao_actual": "EPWA", "dest_iata_actual": "WAW", "datetime_landed": "2023-01-27T06:15:10", "runway_landed": "27L", "flight_time": 3600, "actual_distance": 1007.74, "circle_distance": 6245, "category": "Passenger", "hex": "4A91F9", "first_seen": "2023-01-27T05:06:22", "last_seen": "2023-01-27T06:18:10", "flight_ended": "true" } ] }](https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Flight-summary-API-cover-300x148.jpg)
![An example full flight summary response from the Flightradar24 API: { "data": [ { "fr24_id": "0987654321", "flight": "SK1415", "callsign": "SAS1415", "operated_as": "SAS", "painted_as": "SAS", "type": "A20N", "reg": "SE-DOY", "orig_icao": "ESSA", "orig_iata": "ARN", "datetime_takeoff": "2023-01-27T05:15:22", "runway_takeoff": "12R", "dest_icao": "EKCH", "dest_iata": "CPH", "dest_icao_actual": "EPWA", "dest_iata_actual": "WAW", "datetime_landed": "2023-01-27T06:15:10", "runway_landed": "27L", "flight_time": 3600, "actual_distance": 1007.74, "circle_distance": 6245, "category": "Passenger", "hex": "4A91F9", "first_seen": "2023-01-27T05:06:22", "last_seen": "2023-01-27T06:18:10", "flight_ended": "true" } ] }](https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Flight-summary-API-cover-768x378.jpg)
