BEIJING — Quickstep Holdings will become Australia’s largest independent composites maker with an expansion tied to the confirmation of its role as a supplier to the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program. The company hopes to eventually apply its out-of-autoclave composites curing process to parts that it and U.S. partners will make for the F-35, with a view to cutting program costs.

The Australian government will attempt to make defense department officials accountable for their seemingly endless run of program foul-ups, the latest centered on the NH90 helicopter. Separately, Canberra will conduct a detailed review of the effort to field its NH90 transport version, the MRH90, putting it one step away from the “project of concern” classification that would officially label it as going off the rails.

All Nippon Airways (ANA) will set up a low-cost carrier with Hong Kong and Japanese partners, with the goal of starting operations between October and next April. The carrier will be based at Kansai International Airport and will begin flying with capital of up to ¥15 billion ($184 million). But ANA will be a minority owner, at least at first.