Bombardier: aircraft manufacturer

Bombardier Aerospace is a Canadian aircraft manufacturer, founded by the Bombardier Group. Bombardier is known today as an aircraft manufacturer specialising in private jets and aircraft production. But that wasn’t always the case: the company is one of the leaders in the aircraft manufacturing market, alongside Airbus, Boeing and Embraer. We’d like to tell you more about the history of this aircraft manufacturer, which has evolved over the years in a number of different industries, as well as the missions it fulfils today.

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 awareness of environmental actions

On the road to decarbonisation!

Bombardier is part of the GAMA committee of major aircraft manufacturers (General Aviation Manufacturers Association) on the environment.Its aim is precise: to be a player in the fight against climate change, and to limit the emissions generated by aviation in general. And for good reason: in 5 years, it has halved its consumption of non-renewable paraffin. The company Bombardier is making the transition to more and more sustainable fuels.Bombardier makes it a point of honour to innovate on aircraft that consume less and less energy. The company is rethinking a number of aspects of its aircraft, including aerodynamics and the development of new engines. Bombardier also supports a number 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 is 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) saw the light of day and was a huge commercial success.

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

The change of direction

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

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

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

Bombardier takes off

From 1986 onwards, with the purchase of Canadair, Bombardier finally opened up itsaeronautics and business aviation branch, taking over theairspace and building aeronautical programmes for air transport. It also bought up small, ailing aircraft manufacturers in order to get them back on their feet and boost profits.Bombardier first acquired Short Brothers, then Learjet, and then Havilland Canada.Bombardier continued the work of its new companies with business aircraft. It then embarked on wide-body business jets (the Challengers) and other aircraft programmes, as well as the construction of amphibious aircraft Bombardier 415 (for fighting forest fires) in 1994.

Finally, the Bombardier group began work on the Learjets (named after the former company) and the business jets known as Global, from 1993 onwards

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.

Some of these CJRs were later modified as cargo aircraft for transporting goods. Bombardier then saw the birth of another flagship series of aircraft: 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

In 1992, following the acquisition of the British manufacturer Havilland (part of the Boeing group), Bombardier launched its 50-seat twin-jet and twin-turboprop aircraft business.Shortly afterwards, Bombardier mastered another feat: it succeeded in considerably reducing the noise pollution of a twin-turboprop aircraft.

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. After several years of design and development , the first C-Series made its maiden flight in 2013. Numerous aircraft orders are expected from airlines. Some time later, in 2017, Bombardier joined forces with Airbus to develop the C-Series range. Unfortunately, the aircraft manufacturer Bombardier was forced to withdraw from the project due to a lack of funds

Bombardier’s turnaround: a painful story

Even if you could see Bombardier at air shows, the company was about to become less present in the air.Until 2020 and for 5 years, the Canadian company entered into 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 has had to give up on the project. Similarly, the Bombardier Transport branch is being sold to Alstom in February 2020.In 2020, the industry’s CEO changed and Éric Martel took over as CEO. Like other aircraft manufacturers, Bombardier now focuses exclusively on business jets. 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 devote itself exclusively tobusiness aviation. You will surely have had the chance to see their aircraft fly over the Paris runways at the Paris Air Show. The challenge has been a success, 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.

The 3 families of business jets

Bombardier’s aim with its aircraft equipmentis to concentrate on the essentials. With almost 4,900 aircraft in service, Bombardier is an established leader in the design of private jets, with a reputation for excellence that is second to none. 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,with the Global 7500 being the largest in service 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, meanwhile, are Bombardier’s best-selling jets, combining innovations and technologies like their latest model, the Challenger 3500. Expected to take to the skies in 2022, it boasts some incredible features, while 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

The Canadian company has its head office in Montreal. The main plants for the various Bombardier aircraft are located in Quebec. There are 4 of them, the 2 main ones being

• For example, the factory 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. 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.