Bombardier: CSeries Certification Program on Track

Bombardier has announced in a mailed statement today that the CSeries program stills on track to certify its CSeries CS100 airliner by the end of the year, The manufacturer is committed to the program despite the budget overrun and delays and the lack of firm orders in over a year.

“It’s a thrill to announce that we’re in the final stage of certification. Following a comprehensive flight test program, we’re now on the cusp of validating that the CS100 aircraft is ready for operation with SWISS,” said Fred Cromer, President, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft. The company reported that the Certification Program is completed over 90 per cent, and now is in the final stage of the flight testing campaign, which include function and reliability tests which will take “a few weeks.”

“The function and reliability test flights, which will be conducted using typical airline flight routings and operational procedures, will include about 15 representative airports in Canada and 20 in the United States” said Rob Dewar, Vice President, C Series Aircraft Program, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft.

The last week, the CSeries program hit the headlines after Bombardier and Airbus admitted to have hold talks about a partnership to run the struggling program. The talks, which never came to fruition, sparked rumors in the industry suggesting that the future of the program could be compromised.

n the last month, the CSeries completed noise performance tests, which according to Bombardier confirm the aircraft to be the quietest in its class. Also, the maximum range targets were outpaced by some 350 NM (648 Km) more than originally targeted, to 3,300 NM (6,112 km).

The CSeries is now entering the final stage of flight testing, and puts the first delivery to Swiss International Air Lines in the first half of 2016.