Mitsubishi MRJ Program - News & Discussions

[Beast]

When is it going to enter service? It looks it will not enter service in 1-2 years time. Many critical test still not completed. By then competitor already come up with better product or capture the market already.

 

[BoQ77]

When is it going to enter service? It looks it will not enter service in 1-2 years time. By then competitor already come up with better product or capture the market already.

MRJ would be harder to penetrate the market.
But their ambition is high, Mitsubishi want to penetrate the US market.
Let's watch

MRJ master schedule is to deliver the first aircraft in 2017,

-------------------------
Mitsubishi to Review the MRJ Test and Delivery Schedule

AIRWAYSDECEMBER 17, 2015
MIAMI — Japan’s Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have announced a review of the testing campaign of its Mitsubishi Regional Aircraft (MRJ), sparking rumors in the industry about a possible delay to the program.

In a brief press statement, the airframer says both companies “are now reviewing the entire schedule, from testing to the first delivery” without stating whether this may represent a potential rescheduling of the program, with deliveries set to be in the second quarter of 2017.

The announcement was made a little more than a month after the maiden flight of the MRJ from its base in Nagoya on November 11, four years after the original target date set at program launch in 2008. Since then, the program experienced two additional delays, moving the first flight to summer 2015. A third delay was announced for a few months due to technical issues. Mitsubishi also reported that the flight test campaign will continue its pace.

Rumors about a possible delay were prompted by a report from Japan’s Kyodo news agency, stating that the program would postpone the first delivery to All Nippon Airways (ANA) until 2018, without disclosing the specific reasons for this decision. Nevertheless, the manufacturer assures that the results of its assessment to the program will be disclosed before the end of this month.

The flight test campaign will use five aircraft. Three of these aircraft will perform the campaign in the United States. Last August, Mitsubishi opened the doors of its Engineering Center in Seattle, while Grant County Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, will be the Flight Test Base. The manufacturer has also chosen Roswell, New Mexico for Special Runway Testing tests, Gunnison, Colorado for High Altitude takeoffs and landings trials, and the McKinley Climactic Laboratory in Florida for Extreme Weather Environment tests. One aircraft will remain in Japan for flight testing.

Since its announcement at the 2007 Paris Air Show, the MRJ has logged about 400 orders, mostly from American carriers. Skywest and Eastern Air Lines are two of its most important customers. The MRJ was formally launched in March 2008, and the first flight was originally scheduled for the second quarter of 2012.

Friday August 5th 2016

MRJ reaches test flight milestones
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft.
Skies staff

FTA-1 (pictured) has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications and successfully completed flutter testing. Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation Photo
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft (FTA-1 and FTA-2).
FTA-1 has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications (maximum speed of Mach 0.78 and maximum altitude of 39,000 feet or about 11,900 metres), and successfully completed flutter testing.
This test purposely introduces oscillations to verify that the aircraft diminishes the effect and keeps flying safely without fluttering.
Ferry flights to the United States are scheduled to start in August. Prior to that, Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation is carrying out two flight tests per day, fully preparing for multiple flight tests on a daily basis scheduled in the U.S.
FTA-3 and FTA-4 will move forward with engine tests, aiming for first flights in the summer of 2016

------------

 

[Kyle Sun]

no Japan member here . Useless thread.

 

[BoQ77]

no Japan member here . Useless thread.

I guess, some US members here are ok. As 2 MRJ major customers are US.

In this Friday, April 3, 2015 photo released by Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp., mechanics work on MRJ regional jet at the company's plant in Toyoyama, central Japan.

FTA-1, FTA-2, FTA-3, FTA-4

ANA livery on FTA-5

MRJ test aircraft no 4 and 5 being readied for flight test in MAC’s Nagoya plant. Source: Mitsubishi.

 

[BoQ77]

MRJ FTA-4

 

[CountStrike]

Iran looking at deal for 20 MRJs
2 1 2 1 6
Posted on 11/08/2016 - 11:08
Print
Iran is in talks to buy 20 Mitsubishi Regional Jets (MRJ) from the aircraft’s manufacturer Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, according to local reports.

The Mehr News Agency quoted Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan, deputy minister for international affairs at the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, as stating that a deal for the aircraft could be finalised when a Japanese delegation visits Iran in December.

He said that the MRJs will be bought through a lease-purchase agreement and will be used on domestic routes by Iranian carrier Aseman Airlines.

Following the lifting of international trade sanctions by the west at the beginning of the year, Iran has placed orders for more than 200 aircraft worth nearly $50bn from Airbus and Boeing.

The first MRJ is due for delivery to Japanese carrier ANA in 2018 with Mitsubishi Aircraft and project partner Mitsubishi Heavy Industries targeting the eventual sale of more than 2,000 of the aircraft.

http://mro-network.com/news/2016/08/iran-looking-deal-20-mrjs/14001

MRJ flies to Hokkaido for 1st time

米国飛行の準備
三菱航空機（愛知県豊山町）が開発を進める国産初のジェット旅客機ＭＲＪ（三菱リージョナルジェット）が１８日、北海道の新千歳空港に着陸した。

Mitsubishi Regional Jet, a new passenger jet being developed by Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp., arrives at New Chitose Airport on Aug. 18, 2016, flying to Hokkaido in northern Japan for the first time. The flight by the MRJ, Japan's first domestically produced commercial passenger jet, was part of preparations for making a maiden flight to the United States later this month.


http://www.47news.jp/movie/general_politics_economy/post_14891/

 

[CountStrike]

Mitsubishi Signs Potential First European Jet Orders
Published on Tuesday, 12 July 2016 23:33
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FANBOROUGH: Japan’s Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp on Monday said it had signed a letter of intent for orders of its new regional passenger plane with Swedish leasing company Rockton, in what would be its first European sale.

The deal is for 10 firm orders with an option for an additional 10 and the two companies said they expected a definitive agreement “in the near future” in a statement on the sidelines of the Farnborough air show, southwest of London.

Deliveries are set to begin in 2020.

Hiromichi Morimoto, president of Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp, said the deal would give the MRJ90 programme a “burst of momentum to expand customer base in Europe”.

The MRJ90 is Japan’s first domestically-made commercial aircraft for about half a century.

Japan — and its MRJ jet — are competing with other regional passenger jet manufacturers such as Brazil’s Embraer and Canada’s Bombardier.

Mitsubishi unveiled the jet — which is 35 metres (115 feet) long and seats about 80 passengers — in October 2014.

The short-to-medium-haul plane was backed by the Japanese government and a consortium of major firms including Toyota.

“We find the MRJ airliner to be an exceptional product,” Niklas Lund, president of Rockton, said in the statement.

“This new aircraft will provide crucial economic benefits to airlines looking to operate in the 70-90 passenger size segment,” he said.

--Reuters

 

[BoQ77]

Sukhoi Superjet 100 scheduled Vietnam as,next destination but it crashed day before.

I guess the MRJ90 could have chance to fly in Vietnam, as it could cover 1 way to any location in Vietnam or two way from/to central provInces of Vietnam like Da Nang, or from/to destination in Laos, Cambodia

 

[BoQ77]

18 Aug - MRJ FTA1 departed Nagoya to Yamagata and return.
Next week, FTA1 would be ferried to US

 

[CountStrike]

Iran Now Eyeing Mitsubishi Regional Jet Deal
2016-08-22

Photo: Mitsubishi Aerospace


Iran could be adding the Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) to its fleet later in the year according to a government minister.

Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan, deputy minister for international affairs at the ministry of road and urban development, said the 100-seat MRJ will be purchased as part of a deal on behalf of domestic carrier Aseman Airlines.

A number of deals have been announced informally by government ministers in the past – sometimes to the surprise of the airlines. It is not clear yet how solid this latest order can be.

According to Kashan the deal will be concluded in December when there will be an official visit from Iran to Tokyo. Some 20 of the new MRJ are said to be required.

The regional jet – a joint venture between Mitsubishi and Toyota – was first announced in 2007. The prototype first flight was in November 2015, and deliveries are scheduled for 2018

Iran has already signed a $27bn draft agreement with Airbus for the purchase of 118 jets. These include 45 A320 single-aisle aircraft, 45 A330 wide-bodied aircraft, 16 A350 twin-aisle aircraft, and 12 A380 jets.

Again, there is some doubts about whether all of these will actually be taken.

Reuters reported that Iran has signed draft deals with Boeing and Airbus worth around $50bn for the purchase of about 200 new aircraft. ATR and Embraer have also been named as beneficiaries of the national fleet modernization, following the lifting of certain economic sanctions against Iran.

Source: arabianaerospace.aero

 

[CountStrike]

MRJ in final prep for US ferry flight

• 
  

• 24 AUGUST, 2016
  
• BY: MAVIS TOH
  

Mitsubishi Aircraft has obtained approval from the relevant authorities for a ferry flight of its MRJ regional jet to the US, and is in the final stages of preparing for the voyage.

In response to queries from FlightGlobal, the Japanese airframer says it is “still trying” to conduct the ferry flight of FTA-1 to Moses Lake, Washington, in August. Whether this timeline comes through however, is dependent on weather and aircraft conditions, it adds.

“We have completed most of the tests for FTA-1 and obtained approval from the aviation authorities to make the ferry flight. Currently we’re in the final preparation to conduct the flight,” it says.

“We will make an announcement after FTA-1 takes off from Nagoya Airfield.”

At the Farnborough air show in August, Mitsubishi president Hiromichi Morimoto said the target is to bring its first regional jet prototype to the US in August, so as to accelerate its flight-test programme. The original schedule was for a ferry flight in the fourth quarter of the year.

Mitsubishi says is considering three route options to the US: a northbound route with stops in Russia and Alaska; a southeast route with stops in Guam and Hawaii; or a westbound route with stops in southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

It adds that flight tests for FTA-1 will likely start about three weeks after the aircraft arrives in Moses Lake.

The manufacturer plans to bring four of its flight test aircraft to the US within 2016. FTA-3 and FTA-4 will conduct their first flights this autumn, followed by FTA-5 in winter.

Mitsubishi is trying to bring its test fleet to the US early to accelerate its test programme, and provide a buffer for technical or certification issues that could arise.

It is targeting for certification of the MRJ in early 2018, before delivering the aircraft to launch customer All Nippon Airways in the middle of the year.
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/mrj-in-final-prep-for-us-ferry-flight-428758/

 

[sword1947]

MRJ would be harder to penetrate the market.
But their ambition is high, Mitsubishi want to penetrate the US market.
Let's watch

MRJ master schedule is to deliver the first aircraft in 2017,

-------------------------
Mitsubishi to Review the MRJ Test and Delivery Schedule

AIRWAYSDECEMBER 17, 2015
MIAMI — Japan’s Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have announced a review of the testing campaign of its Mitsubishi Regional Aircraft (MRJ), sparking rumors in the industry about a possible delay to the program.

In a brief press statement, the airframer says both companies “are now reviewing the entire schedule, from testing to the first delivery” without stating whether this may represent a potential rescheduling of the program, with deliveries set to be in the second quarter of 2017.

The announcement was made a little more than a month after the maiden flight of the MRJ from its base in Nagoya on November 11, four years after the original target date set at program launch in 2008. Since then, the program experienced two additional delays, moving the first flight to summer 2015. A third delay was announced for a few months due to technical issues. Mitsubishi also reported that the flight test campaign will continue its pace.

Rumors about a possible delay were prompted by a report from Japan’s Kyodo news agency, stating that the program would postpone the first delivery to All Nippon Airways (ANA) until 2018, without disclosing the specific reasons for this decision. Nevertheless, the manufacturer assures that the results of its assessment to the program will be disclosed before the end of this month.

The flight test campaign will use five aircraft. Three of these aircraft will perform the campaign in the United States. Last August, Mitsubishi opened the doors of its Engineering Center in Seattle, while Grant County Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, will be the Flight Test Base. The manufacturer has also chosen Roswell, New Mexico for Special Runway Testing tests, Gunnison, Colorado for High Altitude takeoffs and landings trials, and the McKinley Climactic Laboratory in Florida for Extreme Weather Environment tests. One aircraft will remain in Japan for flight testing.

Since its announcement at the 2007 Paris Air Show, the MRJ has logged about 400 orders, mostly from American carriers. Skywest and Eastern Air Lines are two of its most important customers. The MRJ was formally launched in March 2008, and the first flight was originally scheduled for the second quarter of 2012.

Friday August 5th 2016

MRJ reaches test flight milestones
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft.
Skies staff

FTA-1 (pictured) has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications and successfully completed flutter testing. Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation Photo
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft (FTA-1 and FTA-2).
FTA-1 has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications (maximum speed of Mach 0.78 and maximum altitude of 39,000 feet or about 11,900 metres), and successfully completed flutter testing.
This test purposely introduces oscillations to verify that the aircraft diminishes the effect and keeps flying safely without fluttering.
Ferry flights to the United States are scheduled to start in August. Prior to that, Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation is carrying out two flight tests per day, fully preparing for multiple flight tests on a daily basis scheduled in the U.S.
FTA-3 and FTA-4 will move forward with engine tests, aiming for first flights in the summer of 2016

------------

MRJ would be harder to penetrate the market.
But their ambition is high, Mitsubishi want to penetrate the US market.
Let's watch

MRJ master schedule is to deliver the first aircraft in 2017,

-------------------------
Mitsubishi to Review the MRJ Test and Delivery Schedule

AIRWAYSDECEMBER 17, 2015
MIAMI — Japan’s Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have announced a review of the testing campaign of its Mitsubishi Regional Aircraft (MRJ), sparking rumors in the industry about a possible delay to the program.

In a brief press statement, the airframer says both companies “are now reviewing the entire schedule, from testing to the first delivery” without stating whether this may represent a potential rescheduling of the program, with deliveries set to be in the second quarter of 2017.

The announcement was made a little more than a month after the maiden flight of the MRJ from its base in Nagoya on November 11, four years after the original target date set at program launch in 2008. Since then, the program experienced two additional delays, moving the first flight to summer 2015. A third delay was announced for a few months due to technical issues. Mitsubishi also reported that the flight test campaign will continue its pace.

Rumors about a possible delay were prompted by a report from Japan’s Kyodo news agency, stating that the program would postpone the first delivery to All Nippon Airways (ANA) until 2018, without disclosing the specific reasons for this decision. Nevertheless, the manufacturer assures that the results of its assessment to the program will be disclosed before the end of this month.

The flight test campaign will use five aircraft. Three of these aircraft will perform the campaign in the United States. Last August, Mitsubishi opened the doors of its Engineering Center in Seattle, while Grant County Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, will be the Flight Test Base. The manufacturer has also chosen Roswell, New Mexico for Special Runway Testing tests, Gunnison, Colorado for High Altitude takeoffs and landings trials, and the McKinley Climactic Laboratory in Florida for Extreme Weather Environment tests. One aircraft will remain in Japan for flight testing.

Since its announcement at the 2007 Paris Air Show, the MRJ has logged about 400 orders, mostly from American carriers. Skywest and Eastern Air Lines are two of its most important customers. The MRJ was formally launched in March 2008, and the first flight was originally scheduled for the second quarter of 2012.

Friday August 5th 2016

MRJ reaches test flight milestones
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft.
Skies staff

FTA-1 (pictured) has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications and successfully completed flutter testing. Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation Photo
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft (FTA-1 and FTA-2).
FTA-1 has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications (maximum speed of Mach 0.78 and maximum altitude of 39,000 feet or about 11,900 metres), and successfully completed flutter testing.
This test purposely introduces oscillations to verify that the aircraft diminishes the effect and keeps flying safely without fluttering.
Ferry flights to the United States are scheduled to start in August. Prior to that, Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation is carrying out two flight tests per day, fully preparing for multiple flight tests on a daily basis scheduled in the U.S.
FTA-3 and FTA-4 will move forward with engine tests, aiming for first flights in the summer of 2016

------------

MRJ would be harder to penetrate the market.
But their ambition is high, Mitsubishi want to penetrate the US market.
Let's watch

MRJ master schedule is to deliver the first aircraft in 2017,

-------------------------
Mitsubishi to Review the MRJ Test and Delivery Schedule

AIRWAYSDECEMBER 17, 2015
MIAMI — Japan’s Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have announced a review of the testing campaign of its Mitsubishi Regional Aircraft (MRJ), sparking rumors in the industry about a possible delay to the program.

In a brief press statement, the airframer says both companies “are now reviewing the entire schedule, from testing to the first delivery” without stating whether this may represent a potential rescheduling of the program, with deliveries set to be in the second quarter of 2017.

The announcement was made a little more than a month after the maiden flight of the MRJ from its base in Nagoya on November 11, four years after the original target date set at program launch in 2008. Since then, the program experienced two additional delays, moving the first flight to summer 2015. A third delay was announced for a few months due to technical issues. Mitsubishi also reported that the flight test campaign will continue its pace.

Rumors about a possible delay were prompted by a report from Japan’s Kyodo news agency, stating that the program would postpone the first delivery to All Nippon Airways (ANA) until 2018, without disclosing the specific reasons for this decision. Nevertheless, the manufacturer assures that the results of its assessment to the program will be disclosed before the end of this month.

The flight test campaign will use five aircraft. Three of these aircraft will perform the campaign in the United States. Last August, Mitsubishi opened the doors of its Engineering Center in Seattle, while Grant County Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, will be the Flight Test Base. The manufacturer has also chosen Roswell, New Mexico for Special Runway Testing tests, Gunnison, Colorado for High Altitude takeoffs and landings trials, and the McKinley Climactic Laboratory in Florida for Extreme Weather Environment tests. One aircraft will remain in Japan for flight testing.

Since its announcement at the 2007 Paris Air Show, the MRJ has logged about 400 orders, mostly from American carriers. Skywest and Eastern Air Lines are two of its most important customers. The MRJ was formally launched in March 2008, and the first flight was originally scheduled for the second quarter of 2012.

Friday August 5th 2016

MRJ reaches test flight milestones
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft.
Skies staff

FTA-1 (pictured) has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications and successfully completed flutter testing. Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation Photo
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) has completed more than 50 flight tests with the first and second flight test aircraft (FTA-1 and FTA-2).
FTA-1 has expanded the flight envelope to the extent of design specifications (maximum speed of Mach 0.78 and maximum altitude of 39,000 feet or about 11,900 metres), and successfully completed flutter testing.
This test purposely introduces oscillations to verify that the aircraft diminishes the effect and keeps flying safely without fluttering.
Ferry flights to the United States are scheduled to start in August. Prior to that, Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation is carrying out two flight tests per day, fully preparing for multiple flight tests on a daily basis scheduled in the U.S.
FTA-3 and FTA-4 will move forward with engine tests, aiming for first flights in the summer of 2016

------------

do you work for them?

 

[BoQ77]

do you work for them?

Do you work for Mitsubishi? I saw you quoted the same article three time in a single post.
------------------------------
As answer to your question: No, I don't. I just follow their development schedule, as I guess this aircraft would be marketed in Vietnam earlier than COMAC ARJ21.
The previous attempt is Sukhoi Superjet 100 but failed as the aircraft crashed in Indonesia day before the demonstration in Vietnam.
Currently, Vietnam Airlines is using ATR-72 for short distance,

 

[BoQ77]

MRJ in final prep for US ferry flight

• 24 August, 2016
• BY: Mavis Toh
• Singapore

Mitsubishi Aircraft has obtained approval from the relevant authorities for a ferry flight of its MRJ regional jet to the US, and is in the final stages of preparing for the voyage.

In response to queries from FlightGlobal, the Japanese airframer says it is “still trying” to conduct the ferry flight of FTA-1 to Moses Lake, Washington, in August. Whether this timeline comes through however, is dependent on weather and aircraft conditions, it adds.

“We have completed most of the tests for FTA-1 and obtained approval from the aviation authorities to make the ferry flight. Currently we’re in the final preparation to conduct the flight,” it says.

“We will make an announcement after FTA-1 takes off from Nagoya Airfield.”

At the Farnborough air show in August, Mitsubishi president Hiromichi Morimoto said the target is to bring its first regional jet prototype to the US in August, so as to accelerate its flight-test programme. The original schedule was for a ferry flight in the fourth quarter of the year.

Mitsubishi says is considering three route options to the US: a northbound route with stops in Russia and Alaska; a southeast route with stops in Guam and Hawaii; or a westbound route with stops in southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

It adds that flight tests for FTA-1 will likely start about three weeks after the aircraft arrives in Moses Lake.

The manufacturer plans to bring four of its flight test aircraft to the US within 2016. FTA-3 and FTA-4 will conduct their first flights this autumn, followed by FTA-5 in winter.

Mitsubishi is trying to bring its test fleet to the US early to accelerate its test programme, and provide a buffer for technical or certification issues that could arise.

It is targeting for certification of the MRJ in early 2018, before delivering the aircraft to launch customer All Nippon Airways in the middle of the year.

 

[BoQ77]

27 Aug 11:47

A MRJ ( FTA-1 ) scheduled to ferry to USA must return to Nagoya,
after the pilots detected the Aircon system malfunction.

Good luck next try.

---------------

MRJ returns to Japan for equipment checks

A passenger plane under development by Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation abandoned a trip to the United States for tests and returned to Japan on Saturday due to a problem with its air-conditioning system.

The Mitsubishi Regional Jet, or MRJ, is Japan's first domestically-produced passenger aircraft in half a century.

The plane left an airport in Aichi Prefecture shortly before noon on Saturday. It was bound first for an airport in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, before making stops on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia's Far East and in the US State of Alaska. Its final destination was to be the US state of Washington.

But the plane turned around about an hour into its flight after there was some trouble with the air conditioning system.

The company says it may have to delay the departure until Sunday or later while engineers check the issue.

The firm has to submit the MRJ for intensive flight tests in Washington before the aircraft can go into commercial operation.

The MRJ successfully completed its maiden flight last November.

Mitsubishi Jet Aborts First Flight to U.S. After Trip Starts (1)
Gareth Allan, Kiyotaka Matsuda and Chris CooperAug 27, 2016 7:50 pm ET
(Bloomberg) -- Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. aborted the maiden test flight to the U.S. of its regional jet, Japan’s first domestically developed model in decades, after trouble with an onboard system about an hour into the trip.

“We came to recognize that the air management system needs to be inspected during the flight,” Mitsubishi said Saturday in a statement. “We then decided to return the aircraft to Nagoya Airfield.”

The plane landed safely at 12:50 p.m. local time in Nagoya, where it left at 11:47 a.m. en route to Moses Lake in Washington. Mitsubishi Aircraft spokeswoman Miho Takahashi didn’t have any initial details on the results of the inspection. The trial will be rescheduled once the checkup is complete, Mitsubishi said.

Saturday’s disrupted journey underscored the challenges in building and testing new passenger aircraft, which can bedevil even long-established planemakers such as Boeing Co. and Airbus Group SE. The Mitsubishi Regional Jet began flight trials in November, then had its delivery date postponed a fourth time -- a one-year delay to mid-2018.

The MRJ, which can seat as many as 92 people, is the first of four that Mitsubishi will fly to U.S. for testing as the company works toward getting certification in the world’s largest economy.

Moses Lake, in remote central Washington, is home to a Boeing testing and evaluation facility. The local airport has a runway long enough to accommodate military jets, and the area is known for clear skies.

Japan’s last locally produced passenger aircraft was the YS-11, a turboprop made by Nihon Aircraft Manufacturing Corp., a consortium that included Mitsubishi Heavy, Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. and Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. Production was stopped in 1974 after 182 of the planes were sold.

Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp., a unit of Mitsubishi Heavy, is trying break the regional-jet duopoly of Brazil’s Embraer SA and Canada’s Bombardier Inc. Mitsubishi Aircraft is getting a boost as Bombardier focuses on building CSeries jets that will be able to carry as many as 160 passengers, rather than renew its lineup of planes with fewer than 100 seats.

(Updates with company’s comment in second paragraph.)