Bombardier expects American, European certification

Deliveries of CSeries jet to Swiss ‘on track’

Bombardier Inc. expects to get certification from U.S. and European authorities for its new CSeries jet in the first half of this year, and will deliver initial models to launch customer Swiss International Air Lines AG on time, one of the Canadian planemaker’s top executives said.

The Montreal-based maker of aerospace and rail equipment is “absolutely on track to deliver what we planned to deliver to Swiss,” Colin Bole, senior vicepresident for sales, said in an interview Tuesday with Bloomberg TV at the Singapore Airshow.

Bombardier has been under pressure from its US$5.4-billion investment to develop a transcontinental jet to compete with offerings from Airbus Group SE and Boeing Co. It has asked the Canadian government for aid to complete the CSeries jet, which is already more than two years late and US$2 billion over budget. Last year the company sold a 49.5 per cent interest in the CSeries to Quebec’s government for US$1 billion.

Bombardier believes the CSeries can compete with more established offerings from Boeing and Airbus, Bole said, adding, “what we’re offering is more than just an aircraft and a price, it’s a value proposition.”

Bombardier shares crossed below C$1 in late January and are down 68 per cent over the past year. The company is due to release its fourth-quarter and full-year results Wednesday.

Bombardier has 243 firm orders for the C Series — including, in Asia, from Korean Air Lines Co. — with delivery due to begin this year. Delta Air Lines Inc. said this month it’s seriously considering the CSeries as it looks to add as many as 50 100-seats jets to its fleet.

A CS100 model in Swiss livery is being presented this week at the Singapore show. The larger CS300 model expected to gain certification mid-year.

Swiss, a regional arm of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, confirmed it expects to receive the first CS100 in the second quarter of this year. Still, the carrier’s chief executive officer, Harry Hohmeister, this month said the delivery schedule of between one and two aircraft per month means Swiss may end up receiving only six to nine models this year, compared with the airline’s earlier forecast that it would receive 10 CS100s this year.

A CS100 model in Swiss livery is being presented this week at the Singapore show.