THE JAPAN NEWS


 

The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) — Japan’s first domestically produced passenger jet — will be delivered as per its revised schedule, according to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Delivery of the MRJ has been postponed five times due to design changes, so there has been concern over its development. The company, however, said it aims to deliver the first MRJ in mid-2020.

“We plan to implement a mass production system for the MRJ within the next fiscal year,” said Seiji Izumisawa, who will assume the presidency of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) on April 1, in an interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun.

Izumisawa, currently MHI executive vice president and chief strategy officer, added: “Now the fight begins. We have almost reached the summit [in terms of development].”

Regarding MHI’s thermal power-generation business, however, Izumisawa said, “It’s getting tougher.”

Building new coal-fired power plants, which emit more carbon dioxide than other types of plants, is frowned upon internationally as the world looks to reduce greenhouse gases.

“We will reform our production and organizational structures in order to optimize them to suit the changes in the business environment,” Izumisawa said.