The second prototype aircraft of the Mitsubishi SpaceJet program has been scrapped, according to images published on social media.
The prototype jet of the M90, the now-canceled regional aircraft development program, was scrapped at Grant County International Airport (MWH), in Moses Lake, Washington, the United States (US). Moses Lake was the former location of Mitsubishi Aircraft facilities in the US, which were closed in May 2020, after the Japanese conglomerate began to wind down the development of the single-aisle jet.
Overall, six prototype Mitsubishi SpaceJet M90 aircraft were built, according to planespotters.net data. The scrapped aircraft was Manufacturer Serial Number (MSN) 10001, registered JA21MJ, and had been stored at MWH since May 2020.
Previously, JA23MJ was scrapped at MWH in March 2022 at the US airport.
Pictures on social media captured the aircraft being taken apart.
Mitsubishi officially announced the ending of the SpaceJet program in early February 2023, axing the development effort that was first announced in March 2008. Despite spending more than $7.5 billion on the SpaceJet program, the Japanese company was unable to deliver a finished product to the market because the aircraft was never approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The US was slated to become its biggest market. However, without certification and pilot unions refusing to lift scope clause limitations on regional aircraft, Japan’s second domestic aircraft program failed to gain enough traction to begin deliveries to customers.
Apart from MSN 1010, registered JA26MJ, all of Mitsubishi’s SpaceJet aircraft have been in storage at MWH since 2020. JA26MJ is currently stored at Nagoya Airport (NKM), Nagoya, Japan.
UPDATE March 9, 2023, 14:00 PM (UTC +3): The article was updated with clarifying information about another SpaceJet that was scrapped in March 2022.
