Canada’s Minister of Transport Marc Garneau announced the Bombardier CSeries CS100 has received type certification in a 18 December ceremony at Bombardier’s assembly line in Mirabel, Quebec.
Hailing certification after a 27-month flight test campaign as a “historic moment” for the Canadian aerospace industry, Garneau praised the CS100’s achievement.
“As Minister of Transport, my top priority is safe and clean transportation, and this new aircraft embodies this element,” he says.
The aircraft level certification follows nearly three years after Transport Canada awarded a type certificate for the Pratt & Whitney PW1500G, the geared turbofan engine powering the twin-jet.
Type certification means the 110-seat CS100 is now clear to enter service in the first half of 2016 with Swiss International Air Lines, which has not yet taken delivery of the first production aircraft.
Bombardier plans to receive a type certification in six months for the 135-seat CS300 airliner.
The flight test campaign proved longer and more expensive than Bombardier had ever conceived. The CSeries introduces several firsts in airliner technology, including Parker Aerospace’s fly-by-wire flight controls, Bombardier’s resin-transfer infused composite wing panels and Constellium's aluminium-lithium material for fuselage panels. Bombardier was also the first to select P&W’s geared turbofan technology and remains Rockwell Collins’ largest commercial application of the ProLine Fusion integrated avionics suite.
Overall, the CSeries also represents the first all-new single-aisle aircraft larger than a regional jet to receive type certification since the Airbus A320 nearly 30 years ago.
“It’s the new reality for the single-aisle market,” says Fred Cromer, president of Bombardier Commercial Aircraft.
Eight months ago, Cromer, a former aircraft leasing company and airline executive, inherited the job of pushing the CSeries through the certification and into production. But the previous delays and setbacks required more resources than Bombardier had left, so the company sought out external investors.
After being rejected by Airbus, Bombardier received a $1 billion commitment from the government of Quebec, which plans to make two payments of $500 million each next year in a new joint venture managing the CSeries programme.
Bombardier’s next tasks are to complete delivery and entry into service of the first CS100 with Swiss, steadily ramp up production in Mirabel and consummate deals with so-called “marquee” customers, such as United Airlines, which is considering buying a new 100-seat jet.
[UPDATE: Corrects supplier of the CSeries aluminium-lithium fuselage panels.]
Source: Cirium Dashboard
