First MRJ Test Aircraft En Route to U.S.

Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp.'s first MRJ90 test aircraft is expected to land in the U.S. within a week, after an earlier attempt was aborted because of a technical fault.
The aircraft, FTA-1, took off from Tokyo Nagoya at 1:28 p.m. (JST) on Sep. 26 and arrived at New Chitose Airport in northern Japan at 2:59 p.m. (JST). It departed New Chitose at 9:23 a.m. (JST) on Sep. 27 and landed at Yelizovo Airport in Russia at 12:05 p.m. (JST).
"It will usually take about one week, four days at the earliest," an MRJ spokeswoman told ATW.
A previous attempt to ferry the aircraft to the U.S. was abandoned on Aug. 28, because of an issue with the monitoring function of the air management system, and the aircraft was forced to return to Tokyo Nagoya.
The Japanese manufacturer is planning to send four of its five test aircraft to Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, to do the majority of their flight certification hours because flight testing is far more restricted in Japan.
Originally, this was scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2016 or early 2017, but this was accelerated to summer 2016, partly as a buffer in case of unexpected problems.
The MRJ90 performed its first flight in November 2015, but the program remains heavily delayed.
Related News:Mitsubishi Jet Aborts First Flight to U.S. After Trip Starts
Victoria Moores, ATW Daily News