Unidentified Airline Also Signs For Six Options
Bombardier Aerospace has announced that a Chinese airline, which
has requested to remain unidentified, has signed a conditional
purchase agreement for six CRJ900 NextGen aircraft. The
transaction, which is the first for the CRJ900 in China, includes
five additional options. Based on list prices, the contract would
be worth about $264 million US. Should all five options also be
converted to firm orders, the value would total $491 million
US.
“Since the introduction of the original Canadair Regional
Jet in 1992, Bombardier’s CRJ Series aircraft have become the
best-selling regional aircraft program in history and we look
forward to welcoming more operators in China,” said Guy C.
Hachey, President and Chief Operating Officer, Bombardier
Aerospace. “Bombardier Aerospace is uniquely positioned as
the only
aircraft manufacturer with three distinct and optimized aircraft
families in the 60- to 149-seat market segment. We are well
positioned to grow our commercial aircraft business in
China.”
More than 80 Bombardier-produced aircraft, including CRJ Series
and Q-Series commercial aircraft, as well as Learjet, Challenger
and Global business jets are currently operating in China.
“Bombardier predicts that over the next twenty years,
China’s fleet of commercial aircraft will grow as it becomes
the world’s second largest market for new aircraft
deliveries, following closely behind the United States,” said
Andy Solem, Vice President, Sales, China, Bombardier Commercial
Aircraft. “We predict a demand for almost 2,400 commercial
aircraft in the 60- to 149-seat segment in China and are working
closely with local airlines, suppliers and stakeholders to assist
in fleet and infrastructure expansion.”
Like other members of the CRJ Series family of aircraft, the
light weight and advanced aerodynamics of the CRJ900 NextGen
regional jet combine to deliver improved efficiency and reduced
operating costs compared to other aircraft in its class. The
combination of a larger winglet and other optimizations since the
launch of the CRJ900 aircraft, give the CRJ900 NextGen regional jet
excellent airfield and en-route fuel consumption. All CRJ NextGen
aircraft feature new interiors with larger overhead luggage bins,
larger windows, improved lighting, and redesigned ceiling panels
and sidewalls.
Worldwide, CRJ Series aircraft are in service with more than 60
airlines and have logged more than 31 million flight hours and 26
million take-off and landing cycles. In addition to airline
operations, more than 30 customers operate corporate variants of
CRJ Series aircraft.
Bombardier has recorded firm orders for 1,708 CRJ Series
aircraft (including 265 CRJ900 and CRJ900 NextGen aircraft), with
1,647 CRJ Series aircraft (including 252 CRJ900 and CRJ900 NextGen
aircraft) delivered as of July 31, 2011.