SKYW: SkyWest has finalized an agreement to acquire 100 Mitsubishi Regional Jets

[mtsupilot376]

SKYW, UTX
7 hours ago

The 64%-held subsidiary of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. (7011.TO) said it has received an order for the 90-seat version of the Mitsubishi Regional Jet from the U.S. airline. Delivery is slated from 2017.
The latest definitive accord also includes an option for an additional order of 100 jets, bringing the total value of the orders to $8.4 billion based on the list price.
SkyWest is the holding company for two scheduled passenger airline operations and an aircraft leasing company. Its groupwide services link the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean with about 4,000 daily departures and a fleet of about 740 regional aircraft.
The latest order from the St. George, Utah-based SkyWest would give leeway to the Japanese aircraft maker to fight stiff competition with the near-duopoly in the regional jet market held by Brazil's Embraer and Bombardier Inc. of Canada. Nascent rivals in Russia and China are also developing their own models.
As demand grows for fuel-efficient small jets, Mitsubishi hopes to eventually obtain at least 1,000 or a 20% share of a 5,000-plane market it expects for smaller jets over the next two decades.
"I am absolutely delighted to have reached agreement on this important partnership," Mitsubishi Aircraft President Hideo Egawa said in a statement. "Without a doubt, this is a major order and a significant boost for the MRJ program," Mr. Egawa said.
Including this deal, the number of cumulative orders the Japanese aircraft maker secured totals 325, comprising 165 firm orders and 160 options. It has already received orders from launch customer All Nippon Airways Inc. (9202.TO) and U.S.-based Trans States Holdings.
With highly fuel-efficient features that use lightweight carbon fiber composites, the 70- to 90-seat MRJ is expected to be flying as early as 2013. The MRJ project will be Japan's first domestically manufactured passenger aircraft project since the YS-11 turboprop, which went out of production in 1973.

Links:

Mitsubishi Aircraft Gets $4.2 Billion Order From SkyWest
http://www.foxbusiness.com/news/2012/12/13/mitsubishi-aircraft-gets-42-billion-order-from-skywest/

 

[ASApuppy]

I see these as replacement aircraft only. By the time these things show up, our original CRJ-700's will be pushing 15 years old. That is about all these -200's have shown to be good for. The C-series would be great, but they are remaining mainline gauge equipment. The MRJ is allowed by all our partners.

 

[DUATS]

Anyone else old enough to remember the first Japanese cars that were imported to the US? Absolute pieces of trash......

 

[Ops check good]

My guess: the 7/9's will replace the 200's and the MRJ's will replace the 7/9's. I still expect them to buy some 7/9's in the mean time the expidite the death of the 200.

 

[Clutch]

Anyone else old enough to remember the first Japanese cars that were imported to the US? Absolute pieces of trash......

May or may not have had something to do with the 5 ton hydrogen bombs that floated onto them a few years before...

 

[AntiJedi]

Anyone else old enough to remember the first Japanese cars that were imported to the US? Absolute pieces of trash......

And yet, the YS-11 outlived many of its competitors...

 

[Jon Rivoli]

SkyWest is the holding company for two scheduled passenger airline operations and an aircraft leasing company.

This is the first time I've heard that we have an aircraft leasing company. Maybe we are going to lease the MRJ's out to some airline in Brazil or Viet Nam.

 

[JustaNumber]

My guess: the 7/9's will replace the 200's and the MRJ's will replace the 7/9's.

How about the MRJs replace the ERJs? What's the latest on UA scope?

 

[Superpilot92]

MRJ90 isnt allowed under DAL scope and with the latest order of 900's it looks like DAL will max scope out with the CRJ-900's.

 

[CesnaCaptn]

This is the first time I've heard that we have an aircraft leasing company. Maybe we are going to lease the MRJ's out to some airline in Brazil or Viet Nam.

My guess is that it's an accounting shell game. It's like Alaska Air Group having a capacity purchase agreement with Horizon.