File Photo: The 9999th Boeing 737-800 aircraft prepares to take off from the company's Seattle airfield in the state of Washington, the United States, March 24, 2018. China's air carrier Okay Airways witnessed the 9999th Boeing 737-800 aircraft delivered by the Boeing Company embarked on a home-bound journey back to China from the United States. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaoling)

by Wu Xiaoling, Ye Zaiqi

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- China and the United States have enjoyed long-standing cooperation, and bilateral aviation cooperation is an epitome of their relations of mutual benefit, John Bruns, president of Boeing China has said.

In a recent interview with Xinhua, Bruns said the U.S.-China aviation cooperation has a broad and far-reaching prospect of unlimited possibilities, which is "a bright spot, microcosm and good example" of the mutually beneficial relationship.

Boeing delivered the 2,000th airplane to China, a Boeing 737 MAX jet for Xiamen Airlines, on Friday in Seattle, Washington state.

"It took us 40 years to deliver the first 1,000, and it only took us five years to deliver the second 1,000 aircraft to China. So, it shows you how fast the aviation industry is growing. Aviation, I believe, is a real bright spot in the cooperation between the U.S. and China," he said.

Bruns recalled that in the early days of Boeing's establishment, Boeing employed its first Chinese engineer who was educated in the United States and helped design the company's first commercially successful aircraft.

Since China opened to the rest of the world and introduced a policy of reform four decades ago, many Chinese leaders have visited Boeing Company, he said.

Although the two countries experienced some challenges, and ups and downs, the U.S.-China relations have maintained an overall positive trend of development, Bruns said.

"If we are firmly committed to the China market, we will be in China as long as Boeing Company exists. We will stay close with our customers to understand their needs and requirements, and do our best to provide them with the best products in the best services we can to help China aviation grow," he noted.

China is not only a market of Boeing products but also an important trade partner, and the cooperation is "a real win-win" partnership, Bruns said.

He cited the 2,000th aircraft newly delivered to China as an example, saying some parts of the passenger plane were made in China's Xi'an and Shanghai, respectively, and China has participated in the production and assembly of about 10,000 Boeing airplanes that are currently in operation.

Bruns said he is optimistic about the U.S.-China cooperation in economy and trade in the future, and also confident that the two countries will find a path to their future-oriented cooperation and development that benefit both.

He noted that China is becoming wealthier with a larger middle class population, and its industry is undergoing upgrading.

This is good news to the rest of the world, and American businesses will also benefit from that, he said.

As China's industry is growing more mature, more and more world-class suppliers will join the supply chain of Boeing Company, he said, adding that China has become the company's largest market outside the United States.

The next 20 years will witness China's commercial fleet more than doubled, and China will need 7,690 new airplanes valued at 1.2 trillion U.S. dollars by 2038, according to a Boeing forecast.