Air Canada has today boosted an ailing Bombardier Aerospace by ordering CSeries aircraft.
The order shows confidence in the new commuter airliner built in Canada by the country’s national carrier at a time when the type is struggling to attract the sales it was hoping for.
The Letter of Intent (LOI) is for 75 CSeries CS300 aircraft powered by Pratt & Whitney PurePower® PW1500G engines as part of Air Canada’s narrowbody fleet renewal plan. The LOI contemplates 45 firm orders plus options to purchase up to an additional 30 aircraft and includes substitution rights to CS100 aircraft in certain circumstances.
Deliveries are scheduled to begin in late 2019 and extend to 2022. The first 25 aircraft on delivery will replace Air Canada’s existing mainline fleet of Embraer E190 aircraft, with the incremental aircraft supporting Air Canada’s hub and network growth, creating one of the world’s youngest, most fuel efficient airline fleets.
The C Series purchase is subject to completion of final documentation and satisfaction of certain other closing conditions precedent.
“Air Canada has a long history of collaboration with Bombardier. Air Canada Express regional partners operate one of the largest fleets of Bombardier aircraft in the world with a mix of over 135 regional jets and turboprop aircraft by December 31, 2016.” said Calin Rovinescu, President and CEO of Air Canada.
The acquisition of the C Series aircraft represents a key element of Air Canada’s narrowbody fleet renewal program and complements the acquisition of 61 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft announced in December 2013 to replace the larger end of the airline’s mainline narrowbody fleet. The Boeing agreement provides for Boeing to purchase up to 20 of the 45 Embraer E190 aircraft in Air Canada’s fleet and the first 25 C Series will replace the remaining E190s. Boeing 737 MAX deliveries are scheduled to begin in late 2017 and extend to 2021, while the C Series deliveries are scheduled to start in late 2019 and extend to 2022.
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