Mitsubishi Heavy Likely to Terminate SpaceJet Airliner, Could lose $7.6 Billion

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. plans to terminate Japan's first domestically manufactured passenger jet project, Spacejet launched 15 years ago and sink upto 1 trillion yen ($7.6 Billion).
The project was launched in 2008, but the company suspended it in October 2020 after it was hit by delays due to a lack of expertise and the coronavirus pandemic. Mitsubishi also closed down its flight test base in the United States, Mainichi newspaper reported.
Mitsubishi Heavy together with Japan's industry and transportation ministries set out to to develop a single-aisle passenger jet with 70 to 90 seats. The project aimed to draw the help of parts suppliers in Japan, which were already providing parts to Boeing Co. and Airbus SA.
The maiden flight in of the SpaceJet occured in 2015. Mitsubishi Heavy said it still maintains about 270 orders for the aircraft as of Monday, according to Mainish. It had as many as about 450 orders at one point, but the figure has decreased due to cancellations by airline customers.