This 88-seater plane from Japan's Mitsubishi is taking on Boeing and Airbus

With few seats and smaller fuselages, regional jets are a different class of aircraft from larger narrow-body planes such as Boeing's 737 or Airbus's A320

A new, long-delayed 88-passenger jet from Japan may finally be the right plane at the right time.

More cities in Asia and Europe are seeking to link up with each other and the global air travel network. The Mitsubishi Regional Jet, the first airliner built in Japan since the 1960s, began certification flights last month in Moses Lake, Washington, to satisfy that demand.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.’s new airliner is testing the skies just as rivals are moving to sell off their manufacturing operations for jets with up to 160 seats. Boeing Co. is set to buy 80 percent of the Embraer