Global 7500 To Drive Delivery Increase at Bombardier

Bombardier Aviation is projected to deliver about 154 business jets this year, up from 142 aircraft last year, as it continues to ramp up Global 7500 production, Bombardier Inc. president and CEO Alain Bellemare said today during the company’s fourth-quarter/year-end investor call. The 2019 total included 12 Learjets, 76 Challengers, and 54 Globals, compared with 137 aircraft (12 Learjets, 83 Challengers, and 42 Globals) in 2018. It also plans to deliver six CRJs this year, down from 33 last year, as it exits the airliner segment.

Of the Globals, 11 were for the Global 7500, shy of the anticipated 15 to 20 the Canadian aircraft manufacturer expected to hand over to customers last year. Bellemare said a lag in aircraft completions was the cause of about a half-dozen deferred deliveries, adding that the outfitting bottleneck is being addressed. Thus, he expects the company to hand over 35 to 40 Global 7500s this year—about a quarter of all aircraft deliveries at Bombardier Aviation.

A year ago, Bombardier had estimated its aviation division would generate about $8 billion in 2019, but came up short at $7.5 billion, mostly due to the deferred Global 7500 deliveries. Profit at its aviation division nearly tripled to $1.194 billion last year, up from $424 million in 2018.