The introduction of China’s new-generation Long March 5 rocket has slipped again, with an industry official saying it is now expected to go into use in 2014. As recently as October the oxygen-hydrogen launcher, which is in the class of the Delta IV and much larger than the current Long March series, was expected to go into service in 2013. Before that, the Long March 5 was seen as a candidate to launch the second Chinese lunar probe, Chang’e 2, which is now due to be launched “sometime around 2009.”

The Southeast Asia aviation market is holding up despite a U.S. economic slowdown, says asset manager Werner Aero Services, which is planning expansion from its Singapore location. “The market has gone soft in North America in the past two months,” says CEO Mike Cazaz. “I don’t see the same response from the rest of the world, although Europe is kind of flat. But places like Southeast Asia and South America are still doing fairly well.” That’s handy because Asia is a region where the company, based in New York, is keen to expand.

China’s ARJ21 regional jet will pick up foreign orders this year, says chief designer Wu Guanghui, predicting the market breakthrough that the project needs to establish itself as a serious competitor to Embraer and Bombardier. Manufacturer Avic 1 says it has 171 orders so far, but that figure may include options on 50 of the aircraft. All orders have been taken from Chinese buyers, except for two ARJ21s for Lao Airlines. Avic 1 has described the initial model of the aircraft, the ARJ21-700, as tailored for the domestic market.