Thirty years ago, Bombardier Inc. began manufacturing commercial planes with the launch of its Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ) program. Now, after announcing it’s in talks to potentially sell the program to Japan’s Mitsubishi, the Montreal-based company has moved one step closer to exiting its commercial aircraft business almost entirely.
With Bombardier poised to shift its focus to the more-lucrative markets of trains and luxury planes, here’s a look back at the company’s storied history in commercial aviation:
CRJ SERIES
Bombardier launched its Canadair Regional Jet program in 1989 with a 50-seat plane, which made its first flight in 1991. The jets in the CRJ Series have a capacity of between 50 and 104 seats. Today, more than 1,900 CRJ aircrafts are used by over 120 operators in 90 countries. The regional jet program once produced the bulk of Bombardier’s revenue.
C SERIES
Bombardier launched the C Series in 2008 in a bid to compete with Boeing and Airbus’ single-aisle aircrafts. Despite receiving a US$1-billion investment from the Quebec government, the development of the C Series was delayed for more than two years and went about $2 billion over budget. In October 2017, while in the midst of a trade dispute with the U.S. and Boeing, Bombardier struck a deal with Airbus where the European planemaker would acquire a majority stake in the C Series and rebrand it as A220. Passenger capacity ranges from 100 to 160.
Q SERIES
The Q Series was known as the Dash 8 Series when Bombardier acquired the turboprops from de Havilland in 1992. After equipping all of the Dash 8 planes with an “Active Noise and Vibration Suppression” (ANVS) system, Bombardier rebranded the Dash 8 Series as the Q Series — Q for “quiet” — in 1998. The Q400 — the only Q Series iteration still being produced — accommodates 82 to 90 passengers. Bombardier sold the program to Longview Aviation Capital for US$300 million last year and the deal closed on Monday. Longview said it plans to relaunch the Dash 8 program under the de Havilland brand.
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