Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. saw a boost this week to sales of its long-delayed SpaceJet regional aircraft, as Mesa Air Group Inc. signed a pact to negotiate a potential 100-plane deal.
The memorandum of understanding, signed Thursday, calls for Mitsubishi and Mesa to discuss terms for a firm order of 50 SpaceJet M100 planes with purchase options for 50 more. Deliveries would begin in 2024, the companies said in a statement from a regional airline conference in Nashville, Tennessee.
The possible order by Phoenix-based Mesa would give the SpaceJet a bigger toehold in the U.S. market. In June, Mitsubishi renamed the aircraft and said deliveries would begin in 2020.