Fortune Favours the Bold

Avatar for Skies MagazineBy Skies Magazine | January 18, 2012

Estimated reading time 10 minutes, 39 seconds.

Bombardier decision to create the CSeries jetliner family was itself a bold move, but predicting that it would take half the 100-to-149-seat market was even bolder; only time will tell if that boldness will pay off.  
Bombardier has always been willing to take calculated risks. The company’s CSeries jetliner program, a highly-ambitious, multi-billion-dollar endeavour, is the latest evidence of the company’s bold and forward-looking business philosophy. As one of its senior aerospace executives, Steve Ridolfi, told an aviation journalist in January 2009, “Cycles come and go, but the trick is to remain focused on the longer term. We are building products for tomorrow.”
Appropriately, the two CSeries airliner models, the CS100 (100 to 125 seats) and the CS300 (120 to 145 seats), have been designed with the future in mind. As Bombardier’s Commercial Aircraft Market Forecast 2011-2030 stated: “We are confident that there will be a demand for new, larger, more fuel-efficient aircraft . . . .” Specifically, “New aircraft demand for 100- to 149- seat aircraft will be for 7,000 deliveries over the next 20 years, generating sales of more than $424 billion [US].”
Bombardier thinks it can get half the business in that segment; industry giants Airbus and Boeing strongly disagree. In fact, to shut out the smaller Canadian player, they have launched their own offerings: the A320neo (new engine option) family and three types of 737 Max jetliners, respectively.
Genesis of the CSeries
Having enjoyed great success throughout the 1990s with its Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ), Bombardier decided to explore building a larger jetliner. As the mid-decade approached, Dutch aerospace company Fokker, maker of the 100-seat F100 airliner, found itself in worsening financial trouble and soon became of interest to Bombardier. By 1995, the Quebec firm had garnered an impressive record of acquiring cash-strapped aerospace companies: Canadair of Montreal, Que., in 1986; Short Brothers of Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 1989; Learjet of Wichita, Kan., in 1990; and Boeing-owned de Havilland Aircraft of Canada based in Toronto, Ont., in 1992. Bombardier considered buying Fokker as its next rescue project, partly to acquire the F100, but after it changed its mind, developing the 70-seat CRJ700 was given priority.
Despite that focus on the CRJ family — as well as continuing to build and develop business jets and specialty aircraft such as water bombers — the company conducted studies in the late-1990s related to its Bombardier Regional Jet Expansion or BRJX project. The proposed 80-to-120-seat airplane would be bigger than the largest of its CRJs, and would have sub-wing engines. In terms of seating capacity, BRJX’s expected competitors at the time were the McDonnell Douglas MD-90 and the Boeing 717 (originally the MD-95). In the end, the BRJX project was shelved in favour of stretching the CRJ700 into the 90-seat CRJ900.
Competing products, however, would soon close in on the CRJ family. In February 2002, Embraer’s ERJ-170 (now E-170) first took to the air, entering airline service 25 months later. The aircraft, which has 70 to 80 seats and sub-wing engines, was well-received, and led to the E-175 (78 to 88 seats), E-190 (98 to 114 seats) and E-195 (108 to 122 seats), all within three years. As Bombardier had no aircraft capable of carrying more than 90-odd passengers, in 2004 Air Canada ended up buying 45 E-190s and 15 E-175s. Consequently, with no jetliner larger than the CRJ900 in its stable for much of the rest of the decade, Bombardier was said to have lost a minimum of $1.77 billion US in business from Air Canada by the end of 2009, plus roughly $23 billion from two dozen other airlines that bought Embraer airplanes.
Funding Required
In July 2004, Bombardier Aerospace finally announced a replacement for the BRJX project: a new family of airliners called the CSeries. Entry into service was planned for 2013 (originally it was 2010, but a subsequent cancellation and resurrection of the program delayed that date). The new aircraft were envisioned to carry 110 to 130 passengers and compete not only against Embraer’s jetliners but also the Boeing 717 and Airbus’s 100-seatA318 and 124-seat A319. After discussions with potential customers, two models were announced: the C110 (later changed to the CS100) and the C130 (later the CS300).
To take on this market, the CSeries program would require funding from many sources. In fact, according to Industry Canada in its October 2009 report: “Bombardier will need funding on the order of $2.6B [Cdn] to develop the CSeries. That investment will come, roughly in thirds, from Bombardier (and its shareholders), CSeries suppliers and repayable loans from government. Thus far, Canada has loaned $350M and Quebec another $118M. The governments of the U.K. and Northern Ireland have also invested in the CSeries.
“The rationale for the U.K. loans is Bombardier’s Belfast facilities. The level of Belfast involvement in the CSeries has diminished somewhat. In May 2005, Bombardier had announced that the composite wings, tailplanes and engine nacelles would be developed by Belfast. Since then, the empennage was shifted to China, and nacelle work moved to engine supplier Pratt & Whitney. Britain is unlikely to be complaining, though. Belfast will be entirely responsible for CSeries wing design/production . . . .
“Another nation which stands to benefit considerably from its involvement in the CSeries is not loaning development funds to Bombardier. That exception is the People’s Republic of China. Although Bombardier’s Chinese partner is part of a state-owned combine, Beijing will not be a risk-sharing partner. Instead, Bombardier is supplying capital for Chinese projects.”
Since that report, costs for the CSeries program have risen to about $3.4 billion Cdn, of which Bombardier is said to be covering about half.
Design of the Times
The CSeries has been designed with the future in mind, and the company highlights the family’s strengths in technology, operational-cost savings, comfort and environmental friendliness, among other areas.
Significant use of composites and other advanced materials allow for weight savings without sacrificing strength. Regarding the CSeries’ substantially composite wings, Bombardier personnel in Northern Ireland built and tested a demonstrator unit last year. “Producing this demonstrator has been a significant investment for us, but will bring significant benefits,” said Michael Ryan, Bombardier Aerospace vice-president and general manager in Belfast, in a press release. “Through a rigorous testing program, we will get real test data from the demonstrator, which will enable us to optimize the design of the actual CSeries aircraft production wing. This will allow us to create the lightest-weight solution with the utmost confidence in the wing’s structural integrity.” 
For propulsion, Bombardier decided to equip the CSeries with Pratt & Whitney PurePower PW1500 series geared turbofan engines (see p.19, Canadian Skies, Sept-Oct 2011). According to Bombardier, the combination of the lightweight materials used and the fuel-efficient engines will result in a “20 per cent fuel burn advantage,” plus lower operating costs and lowered carbon dioxide emissions. There will also be sizable decreases in the aircraft’s noise footprint and nitric oxide emissions.
Among its stated best-in-class cabin comfort features are a lower cabin altitude; bigger seats; larger and more windows; and spacious, rotating overhead storage bins that are capable of handling carry-on baggage of considerable size. In fact, on the storage side, Bombardier claims the CSeries will provide airlines with the highest overhead bin volume per passenger of any narrow-body airliner.
The airplane’s flight deck, meanwhile, was showcased for the first time at the Paris Air Show this past June. And, as Robert Dewar, vice-president and general manager, CSeries, for Bombardier’s commercial aircraft business segment, was quoted in a company press release: “The CSeries cockpit takes flying to a whole new level by reducing costs while improving operational efficiency. This flight deck for the future offers enhanced pilot awareness, increased simplicity, paperless operation and reduced pilot training time.”
Success in Waiting
At press time, Bombardier had 143 firm orders (64 for the CS100 and 79 for the CS300) with 149 options for its CSeries airliners. Based on list prices, the firm orders are worth approximately $9.5 billion US. Those orders represent about eight per cent of the very latest generation of 100-to-149-seat jetliners — CSeries, 737 Max, A320neo — that have been placed (Boeing has about 27 per cent of the orders and Airbus the balance).
The first CS100 and CS300 aircraft are expected to take to the skies next year and be certified by late 2013. If all goes well, Bombardier may be rewarded for its bold CSeries move with additional aerospace business during this decade and beyond.

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