Final assembly of the first Mitsubishi Regional Jet has begun at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries facility in Nagoya, Japan. This was facilitated by the delivery of the first middle fuselage section, which will shortly be followed by the wings and other fuselage sections, then the tail section and finally integration of the Pratt & Whitney PurePower™ geared turbofan engine.
Final assembly of the aircraft will be conducted at the Komaki South plant of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Nagoya. As with CSeries and A350, deliveries of key components is the point at which the aircraft moves from a “paper design” into a real airplane, with first flight 6-9 months down the road, depending on the supply chain critical path.
The 70-90 seat MRJ will compete with the Embraer E-Jet, Bombardier CRJ and Sukhoi Superjet in the 70-100 seat segment of the market. With advanced technology engines and systems, the projected economics for the MRJ are favorable vis-à-vis its major competitors, and the aircraft has garnered orders from ANA, TransStates and SkyWest. We look forward to Japan’s first new commercial airliner introduction since the YS-11 turboprop that was first produced in 1962, 51 years ago.
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