Bombardier: aircraft manufacturer

Bombardier Aerospace is a Canadian aircraft manufacturer, founded by the Bombardier Group.

Today, Bombardier is known as an aircraft manufacturer specialising in the production of private jets and aircraft. But that wasn’t always the case.

The company is one of the market leaders in aircraft construction, alongside Airbus, Boeing and Embraer.

We tell you more about the history of this aeronautical ocnstructeru, which has evolved throughout history in different industries, as well as the missions that the company fulfils today.

Photo Credit: Bombardier

Bombardier today:

A few figures:

Bombardier bombardier is one of the world’s leading aircraft manufacturers. The manufacturer has 4,900 aircraft in its global fleet and 1,200 technicians working around the world to build and maintain Bombardier aircraft.

The American giant is present in more than 12 countries, with no fewer than 13,810 employees, in 2021, working every day to build high-performance private jets.

An aircraft manufacturer of private jets committed to strong values:

The aircraft manufacturer Bombardier has put in place 5 strong values, since the arrival of the current CEO, Eric Martel, in 2020. Essentially, these are a corporate culture built around :

• employees and customers
• performance
• excellence
• teamwork
• authenticity

Bombardier raises environmental awareness

Photo credit: Unsplash

On the road to decarbonisation!

Bombardier is part of the GAMA (General Aviation Manufacturers Association) committee of major aircraft manufacturers on the environment.

Its aim is clear: to play a part in the fight against climate change, and to limit the emissions generated by aviation in general.

In just 5 years, it has halved its consumption of non-renewable paraffin. Bombardier is making the transition to more and more sustainable fuels.

Bombardier bombardier makes it a point of honour to innovate on aircraft that consume less and less energy. The company is rethinking many aspects of aircraft design, including aerodynamics and the development of new engines.

In addition, Bombardier supports a wide range of projects such as the protection of forests (in Mexico, for example). The aim is to combat greenhouse gas pollution as far as possible.

The history of Bombardier: from the origins of transport on Earth to its take-off

The origins of Bombardier

• At the beginning of the 20th century, in 1907 to be exact, Joseph-Armand Bombardier was born in Valcourt, Quebec. This ingenious and entrepreneurial genius builds his first snowmobile at the age of 15. His wish was clear: to make it easier for people to get around, whatever the weather (in this case, the snowy landscapes of Canada). And his wish came true.

• In 1937, his seven-seater snowmobile (the B7) was launched and was a huge commercial success.

• In 1959, building on his success with the snowmobile, he launched the famous Ski-Doo snowmobile.

Change of management

• 1966: Laurent Beaudoin became CEO of the company. The company entered a new era. The company wants to diversify and grow.

• 1969: Bombardier goes public (shares listed in Montreal and Toronto).

• 1970s: Bombardier (Transportation) launches into rail transportation and rolling stock, such as cars for private use and metro cars for public transport.

Bombardier takes off

In 1986, with the purchase of Canadair, Bombardier finally opened up its branch of theaeronautics and business aviationindustry.

It took over theairspace and built its own aircraft programmes for air transport. It also bought up small, ailing aircraft manufacturers in order to get them back on their feet and boost profits. Initially Short Brothers, then Learjet, then Havilland Canada.

Bombardier continued the work of its new companies with business aircraft. It then began work on wide-body business jets (the Challengers) and other aircraft programmes, as well as the construction of Bombardier 415 amphibious aircraft (for fighting forest fires) in 1994.

Finally, the Bombardier Group began work on the Learjets (named after the former company) and the Global business jets in 1993.

Photo Credit: Bombardier

Bombardier Aviation: its aerospace missions from 1989 to today

Takeover of former companies

1989saw the launch of the CJR (Canadair Regional Jet) range. These are twin-engine aircraft with between 50 and 100 seats, depending on the model. These aircraft specialise in regional routes. Today, they are the preferred airliners for this type of route.

In addition, some of these CJRs were later modified as cargo aircraft to transport goods.

This was followed by another flagship series of aircraft Bombardier: the Learjet range. From the 1990s onwards, they reinvented and improved these famous private jets, turning them into design gems. Coupled with low operating costs, these business jets offer further improvements such as :

• cabin modernisation
• enhanced aircraft performance.

Challenges ahead

Several challenges lie ahead for the Canadian manufacturer’s teams.

In 1992, following the acquisition of the British manufacturer Havilland (part of the Boeing group), Bombardier began producing 50-seat twin-jet and twin-turboprop aircraft. Bombardier is the only manufacturer to tackle this type of regional aircraft.

Shortly afterwards, another feat was brilliantly achieved: Bombardier succeeded in considerably reducing the noise pollution of a twin turboprop.

This earned it the name “Q Series”, the Q standing for “quiet”.

The C-Series episode

The C-Series are commercial aircraft whose creation was announced in 2008. In a short space of time, these aircraft have become the most sophisticated in commercialaviation.

After several years of design and development, the first C-Series made its maiden flight in 2013. Numerous aircraft orders are expected from airlines. German airline Lufthansa, for example, will be ordering around 60 aircraft (at an estimated cost of $2 billion).

Some time later, in 2017, Bombardier joined forces with Airbus to enhance the value of the C-Series range. Unfortunately, Bombardier was forced to withdraw from the project due to a lack of funds.

Photo Credit: Bombardier

Bombardier’s turnaround: a painful story

Even if you could see Bombardier at air shows, the company would become less present in the air.

For 5 years up to 2020, the Canadian company has been undergoing a recovery plan. Indeed, the aircraft manufacturer’s debts have accumulated, and in order to preserve the company and ensure its future, it has had to withdraw from a number of projects and forget about delivering large orders. This is why, even with the resounding success of the C-Series range, Bombardier had to abandon the project.

Similarly, the Bombardier Transportation division will be sold to Alstom in February 2020. This will enable the company to reduce its debt considerably.

In 2020, the CEO of the industry changes and Éric Martel takes over the management of the company. Like other aircraft manufacturers, Bombardier is now focusing exclusively on business aircraft.

One page is turned, another is opened, and it has already produced some impressive innovations for the aerospace world.

Bombardier’s strategies and actions today

Bombardier’s goal is to be the global industry leader: in performance, in the value we deliver to our customers and shareholders, and in operational excellence. Éric Martel, Chief Executive Officer and President of Bombardier.

A few figures on the Bombardier private jet segment

Less than two years ago, Bombardier decided to focus exclusively onbusiness aviation.

You will surely be lucky enough to see their aircraft flying over the Paris runways at the Paris Air Show.

And the challenge has paid off, as these figures show.

• 142 is the number of jets that Bombardier has delivered in 2020.
• 452 million isthe largest aircraft order in 2021, with around ten jets to be delivered.

Photo Credit: Bombardier – Challenger 3500

The 3 families of business jets

Bombardier wants to focus on the essentials with its aircraft equipment. With nearly 4,900 aircraft in service, Bombardier is an established leader in the design of private jets.

They operate several categories of private jets: Learjet, Challenger and Global.

The Global range offers the largest business jets in the aircraft group’s fleet.

The Global 7500 is the largest in circulation today, with one of the longest flight ranges. With several areas within the same aircraft, you’ll feel rested even on a long-haul flight.

The Challengers fleet are Bombardier’s best-selling jets.

They are a combination of innovation and technology, like their latest model, the Challenger 3500. Due to take to the skies in 2022, it boasts some incredible features.

Finally, the Learjet 75 Liberty combines travel comfort with the most stringent safety standards in the aviation sector. This makes it a jet that cannot be ignored on the market.

The different Bombardier sites

When you talk about supplying jets, you inevitably talk about factories with high production rates.

The Canadian company is headquartered in Montreal. The main plants for Bombardier’s various aircraft are located in Quebec. There are 4 of them, the 2 main ones being:

• For example, the plant that operates thefinal assembly of the C-Series in Mirabel, Quebec.
• The plant in Saint-Laurent, Quebec, makes certain components for business jets.

Other factories complete the family and work on specific parts of the aircraft, such as wings or fairings. They also provide aircraft maintenance and customer support services. These sites extend internationally to more than ten countries.

At AEROAFFAIRES, we are delighted to work with you and offer you private jets Bombardier. To find out more and book your flight, complete our online quote or call us on +33(0)1 44 09 91 82.