Japan returns to the drawing board to develop homegrown passenger aircraft

March 28th 2024

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Japan’s government is resuming its commitment to build a next-generation passenger aircraft. Read More » First reported by Nikkei news sources, the government confirmed the plan on March 27. After the failure of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' SpaceJet program, the Japanese authorities have developed a new approach to the process based on the participation of multiple companies and the support necessary to create technology standards, it said. “We aim to transform the aircraft industry from being component suppliers to one that can take the initiative in providing value-added products. It is our mission to utilize public and private knowledge as well as the experience learned from SpaceJet,” Japan’s vice minister of economy, trade and industry, Kazuchika Iwatu, said. The project will explore propulsion systems beyond jet engines, including hydrogen combustion engines, Nikkei reported.