Japan's first passenger jet made its maiden test flight today, a landmark in a decade-long programme to launch the plane aimed at competing with Brazilian and Canadian rivals in the global market for smaller aircraft.
About half a century after the last Japanese-made commercial plane took to the skies, the Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ), painted with dark blue, red and beige stripes, took off from Nagoya airport under clear skies for a 90-minute trip.
After being barred from developing aircraft following World War II, Japan - and its MRJ jet - is competing with other regional passenger jet manufacturers such as Brazil's Embraer and Canada's Bombardier.
Hiromichi Morimoto, president of Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp - a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries - voiced his delight and relief at the successful flight.
"We were able to see the beautiful fuselage of the MRJ taking off into the sunny autumn sky," he told a press conference.
"The fact that I was able to see that with you, as someone who was involved in its development, there is no greater joy."
Its pilot also praised the jet.
"The operation performance of the MRJ was far better than expected," Yoshiyuki Yasumura said, according to a Mitsubishi Aircraft release.
"We had a significantly comfortable flight."
The two-engine MRJ marks a new chapter for Japan's aviation sector, which last built a commercial airliner in 1962 - the YS-11 turboprop that was discontinued about a decade later.
The MRJ is approximately 35-metres long, has a pointed nose and will seat about 80 passengers.
Mitsubishi Aircraft boasts that the fuel-efficient MRJ will offer more passenger comfort with lower operating costs, eyeing the booming regional jet sector.
China is also developing a similar-sized homegrown regional passenger jet, the ARJ21. It had its first test flight in 2008 and the initial commercial delivery is reportedly expected by the end of the year.
Mitsubishi Heavy would not disclose how much of the aircraft consists of Japanese components, but it is powered by two next-generation engines developed by Pratt & Whitney of the United States.
The company said the US parts are key and have helped it slash operating costs by about 20 per cent.
The maiden flight by the Japanese passenger jet stirred excitement at home.
"We very much welcome the success of the first flight as it is a new beginning for the Japanese aircraft industry," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters.
