Bombardier confident it will clear regional jet backlog and will not build white tails
Bombardier’s decision last month to suspend production of the 50-seat CRJ200 regional jet was galvanised by the recent amendment to its Delta Air Lines backlog and a soon-to-be announced revision to a regional jet order held by Spanish carrier Air Nostrum.
The company said on 28 October that it would suspend CRJ200 production in January. The revised orders, combined with delivery of two outstanding CRJ200s to Japan Air Lines, clears 60% – 39 aircraft – of the manufacturer’s 50-seat regional jet backlog, which stood at 55 aircraft on 30 September, but has declined by at least two aircraft through deliveries.
This reduction leaves Bombardier with, at most, 14 CRJ200s to be removed from the backlog before January. What remains of this in January will be allocated to Bombardier’s buoyant corporate shuttle production schedule, a move that allows the manufacturer to stand by its claim that it will not produce “white tails”. The CRJ200 and Challenger 850 corporate shuttle use the same airframe.
Bombardier confirms that the order for 19 CRJ200s held by Air Nostrum will be revised, but declines to be specific. However, in October last year the Spanish carrier’s chairman Carlos Bertomeu said that the order for 20 CRJ200s would be changed to include at least 15 larger jets, including 10 CRJ900s.
Under those terms, Bombardier only has to build up to four more CRJ200s to fulfill its Air Nostrum backlog, and has the added benefit of adding 15 aircraft to its CRJ700 and CRJ900 backlog.
This mirrors a revision to the manufacturer’s backlog of 18 aircraft that were held by Delta Air Lines on 30 September. Under the new deal, those aircraft have now been assigned to SkyWest Airlines as part of its purchase of Delta Connection carrier Atlantic Southeast Airlines. SkyWest, in turn, renegotiated the order to convert the 50-seaters to the larger 70-seat CRJ700.
With these revisions, Bombardier is left with just 16 CRJ200s in its 30 September backlog. Fifteen of these are from an order placed in July by Northwest Airlines for its affiliate Mesaba Airlines, while the remaining one is a US Airways aircraft. Northwest has since taken delivery of two of the CRJ200s, although the US major has indicated that Mesaba will not be receiving any more 50-seat regional jets. Neither Bombardier nor Northwest will comment on the fate of the remaining CRJ200s.
Regardless of Northwest’s order, Bombardier is adamant it will clear its CRJ200 backlog. “We will be able to transfer [the January CRJ200 backlog] to our corporate line,” says Bombardier. “We will not be producing any white tails.”
DARREN SHANNON/WASHINGTON DC
Source: Flight International
