The project to build Beijing’s next airport will be formally launched within weeks, almost 20 years since it was first proposed, local media report. An agreement among the armed forces, the civil aviation authorities and local government late last year removed what long has been seen as the main obstacle to building the new airport, the need to close the military airfield at Nanyuan, says the Economic Observer.

Throw a broad net to catch a big fish, the Chinese say. In English: have a lot of irons in the fire. Following that principle, China is contemplating at least nine business aircraft, of which five would be dedicated private jets while the others would be adapted commercial airplanes. Not all of those ideas will materialize, but five chances is a lot, even if a truly home-grown Chinese business jet is many years away.

Japan and South Korea are both laying the groundwork for combat aircraft they would field in the 2030s. But, whereas Japanese defense officials are looking at a manned fighter that would leap in technology past the Lockheed Martin F-35, South Korea is working on a strike drone for the 2030s, and a technically less ambitious—but still enormously challenging—home-grown fighter for the 2020s.