Ganti pesawat domestik besar denganpaduan titanium
Pada tahun 2006, Dewan Negara menyetujui pembentukan Komite demonstrasi skema pesawat besar. Cao Chunxiao adalah satu-satunya anggota yang terlibat dalam penelitian material penerbangan. Setelah peluncuran proyek, Cao Chunxiao menjabat sebagai anggota komite penasihat ahli dan melakukan perjalanan ke seluruh negeri. Proyek pesawat besar mencakup pesawat sipil dan militer, dan kode pesawat sipil adalah C919.
The less weight an airplane has, the better. The weight of the airplane itself is a percentage of its total take-off weight, which is called the "structural weight coefficient of the airplane". In the past 70 years, no aircraft has had a structural weight factor of less than 27 percent , which is due to the performance of large components and the manufacturing capacity of large components. Titanium material becomes the key. Paduan titaniummaterial dan teknologi tempa dapat mengurangi bobot struktural pesawat dan meningkatkan daya saingnya.
Today, the more economically demanding C919 uses 8 percent titanium, comparable to 7.5 percent of the Boeing 777 in the U.S. Large aircraft can not be manufactured without large forgings which require high technology. In the column "Academician's Introduction", Cao Chunxiao shows titanium forging joint for C919, named TC4, weighing 600 kg. To make similar forgings, China has built the world's largest 80,000-ton hydraulic press.
In November 2015, C919 with China's independent intellectual property rights was officially unveiled worldwide in Shanghai. Cao Chunxiao was thrilled at the scene and his dream of more than forty years came true at last.
Pada tanggal 5 Mei 2017, pesawat C919 melakukan penerbangan pertama yang sukses di Shanghai. Pada Maret 2021, C919 menerima pesanan pertama. Pada awal 2022, C919 telah menerima 815 pesanan.
