Bombardier

Bombardier is a global transportation company, present in more than 60 countries on five continents taht operates two industry-leading businesses:

• Aerospace
• Rail transportation

Bombardier 66,900 employees design, manufacture, sell and support the widest range of world-class products in these two sectors. This includes commercial and business jets, as well as rail transportation equipment, systems and services.

Bombardier is headquartered in Montréal, Canada, and its shares (BBD) are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange. In the fiscal year ended January 31, 2009, we posted revenues of $19.7 billion US.

The company sold its recreation vehicle business, which made Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobiles, ATVs, and Sea-Doo personal watercraft.

History

The aerospace division was launched with the 1986 acquisition of Canadair, at the time owned by the Government of Canada, and a company that had recorded the then largest loss in history of any Canadian corporation. Politically, the Federal Government could not allow the Montreal, Quebec based company to close, and any hints that it might do so were met with media stories of the Government's Avro CF-105 Arrow fiasco.

After acquiring Canadair and restoring it to profitability, Bombardier acquired in 1989 the near-bankrupt Short Brothers aircraft manufacturing company in Belfast, Northern Ireland. This was followed in 1990 by the acquision of the bankrupt Learjet Company of Wichita, Kansas, builder of the world-famous Learjet business aircraft and finally the money-losing Boeing subsidiary de Havilland Aircraft of Canada based in Toronto, Ontario in 1992.

The aerospace arm now accounts for over half of the company's revenue. Bombardier's most popular aircraft currently include its Dash 8, CRJ100/200/440, and CRJ700/900/1000 lines of regional airliners. It also manufactures the Bombardier 415 amphibious water-bomber and the Challenger business jet. Learjet continues to operate as a subsidiary of Bombardier and manufactures jets under the Learjet name.

Bombardier had been in discussions with Mirabel, Quebec (near Montreal) and Kansas City, Missouri for a $375 million assembly plant, for its future Cseries aircraft, which Bombardier is marketing as a replacement for aging DC-9, MD-80 and early, smaller versions of the Boeing 737. This new jet competes with the Boeing 737-600, Airbus A319 and A320 and Embraer 195. Bombardier claims the Cseries, which the company will offer in 110-seat and 130-seat versions, will burn at least 20% less fuel per trip than its "nearest" Embraer competitor and achieve "high 20s (percentage) savings" vs. the Boeing 737-600 or -700.

On July 13, 2008, Bombardier announced that production of the C-series would be accomplished in the Montreal suburbs. The launch customer, Lufthansa, has signed a Letter of Intent for up to 60 aircraft and 30 options.