Bombardier Learjet 85 On Track for 2013 Entry

Bombardier Aerospace’s all-composite Learjet 85 is on track to enter service in 2013, the Canadian aircraft manufacturer announced at Ebace. Development and production teams in Wichita; Montreal; Belfast, Northern Ireland; and Querétaro, Mexico, are actively engaged as work has transitioned from the detail design phase to the build, test and validate phase. In Montreal, engineers are completing the final production drawings for the test aircraft. Meanwhile, construction of the Learjet 85 aircraft final assembly building in Wichita has begun. The Belfast team manufactured the first production wing spars, and wing skins are currently in production. Both the spars and skins will be shipped to the Querétaro facility for final wing assembly. Finally, production of parts has begun at the Querétaro plant, and production of the majority of composite parts for the first aircraft is under way.