Japan’s Skymark Airlines has cancelled about 10% of its June schedule, dropping an average of six flights a day, because, it says, two of its 85 pilots are leaving the company. It is unclear why the loss of just two pilots is having so great an effect on the schedule. The transport ministry says the cut could extend into July and beyond and is urging Skymark to get its business back in order.

China’s two main aircraft-making groups, Avic 1 and Avic 2, will merge back together, nine years after they were separated, industry executives say. The merger is the next step in China’s long campaign to turn its aircraft sector into an internationally competitive industry that operates on a fully commercial basis. The combined business will be heavily involved in making aircraft parts, while the new Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (CACC) separately pursues the national project of building a mainline airliner to complement the current ARJ21 regional jet.

China’s two main aircraft-making groups will merge back together as a step toward simplifying and rationalizing the industry, especially in the military subsector. The re-merger of Avic 1 and Avic 2 is expected to happen this year, nine years after they were separated. It may be a prelude to pulling the industry apart again to create a range of national champions focused on different parts of the aircraft-making business.