According to a recent statement made by the head of Boeing Japan, it appears that Boing will be involved in Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' regional jet. However, the main focus of the company will continue to rest on larger aircrafts.
Recently, Nicole Piasecki, Boeing's Japan president noted that the firm is presently holding talks with Japan's largest heavy machinery maker regarding the program. However, she did not make any comments regarding the contents of their discussion.
The JPY150 billion yen (USD$1.39 billion) project by Mitsubishi Heavy, dubbed the Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ), will carry between 70 to 90 passengers and fly head to head with similar planes constructed by Canada's Bombardier and Brazil's Embraer.
Nicole Piasecki commented, "I can't reveal details about what we're talking about right now, but we will be involved in a minimal way in the MRJ program. We will not be selling the aircraft; we will not be investing in the program per se. Our customers are counting on us to focus on the large airplane side."
Most notably, Mitsubishi has fixed a target of selling not less than 1,000 regional jets in a span of 20 years.
Already, Boeing is enjoying a predominant presence in Japan. Almost all the planes owned by the airlines based in the country are bought from them. However, most interestingly, All Nippon Airways is scheduled to be the first airline to take the delivery of Boeing's new 787. With a postponement from the original target date of May 2008, the first deliveries of the 787 are now fixed for the third quarter of next year.
