Eastern Air Lines cancels order for 20 MRJs

Eastern Air Lines and Mitsubishi Aircraft have terminated a purchase agreement for 20 MRJ regional jets, shaving off close to 10% of the manufacturer's firm order book. Mitsubishi said that the sales agreement, which also includes options for an additional 20 of the type, was terminated "very recently", following the airline's acquisition by luxury private charter operator Swift Air. "They sold their business to Swift, they returned their AOC to the US FAA, so this is a change in their business consideration and we agreed that the best option for both parties was to conclude the termination," said Yugo Fukuhara, Mitsubishi's VP and general manager of sales and marketing. He adds that while the loss of Eastern is "regrettable", he expects it to have no "major impact" on the MRJ programme. The deal with Eastern was signed in 2014, with deliveries then set for 2019. The delivery timeline has however been pushed back due to two rounds of programme delays since. The manufacturer would not disclose the updated delivery schedule for Eastern, but says that those slots can now be offered to existing and potential customers. With Eastern's cancellation, Mitsubishi now has firm orders for 213 aircraft from six customers, comprising All Nippon Airways, Trans States Holdings, SkyWest Inc, Air Mandalay, Japan Airlines and Aerolease Aviation. Swedish lessor Rockton signed a letter of intent for 10 MRJ90s in 2016, but this still has not been firmed.<br/>