Since being established on 1 April 1951 as the
Aviation Industry Administration Commission, the aviation industry of the
People's Republic of China has been through 12 systemic reforms. In 1994, Avic was among the large industrial
state-owned enterprises of China which were selected for a pilot program of restructuring as state holding companies, thereby enabling partial public listings of its subsidiaries' assets. AVIC purchased American aircraft engine manufacturer
Continental Motors, Inc. in 2010, aircraft manufacturer
Cirrus in 2011, and specialized parts supplier
Align Aerospace in 2015. In 2015, AVIC and
BHR Partners acquired U.S. automotive supplier
Henniges, through a joint venture structure. In 2016,
Aero Engine Corporation of China was formed, capitalized with US$7.5 billion by Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) and Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) in order to consolidate aero-engine and related technologies.
Split and re-merger China Aviation Industry Corporation was split into two separate entities, China Aviation Industry Corporation I and China Aviation Industry Corporation II in 1999. Both retained civilian and military aircraft production capabilities, along with a number of unrelated business ventures. The split was intended to foster
competitiveness in the Chinese aerospace industry. In 2008, AVIC I and AVIC II officially merged back together. The previous separation resulted in split resources and led to redundant projects. The goal of the merger was to eliminate this redundancy and spin off pursuits unrelated to aerospace, such as motorcycle and automobile parts manufacturing.
Espionage allegations In April 2009,
The Wall Street Journal reported that computer spies, allegedly Chinese, "had penetrated the database of the
Joint Strike Fighter program and acquired terabytes of secret information about the fighter, possibly compromising its future effectiveness." AVIC allegedly "incorporated the stolen know-how into China's
Chengdu J-20 and
Shenyang FC-31 fighters."
U.S. sanctions In November 2020,
Donald Trump issued an
executive order prohibiting any American company or individual from owning shares in companies that the
United States Department of Defense has listed as having links to the
People's Liberation Army, which included AVIC.
Russian invasion of Ukraine In February 2023, the
Center for Advanced Defense Studies reported that customs data showed that AVIC shipped parts for
Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets to a subsidiary of sanctioned Russian defense company
Rostec following the 2022
Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Myanmar civil war AVIC has provided weapons and aircraft to the
Myanmar junta. ==Products==