Building Innovative and Game-Changing Planes

What are some of the major challenges and trends that have been impacting the Aerospace and defense industry lately? How is it affecting Bombardier?

The Aerospace industry is going through unprecedented times with some aspects of our business, and I think the challenges with our supply chain stand out.

To effectively mitigate these challenges, Bombardier has reacted quickly to identify customer concerns before they have escalated, and we have been highly successful in mitigating challenges with our proactive approach. We have also strategically increased inventories of critical components and raw materials and have been proactive in sending staff to key suppliers.

We are also tapping the power of might from our procurement department to help alleviate some of these challenges. We have people in the field working directly with our primary and sub-tier suppliers to ensure the supply chain finds the talent and parts they need. All of this will ensure our customers receive the parts they need from Bombardier when they need them.

What keeps you up at night when it comes to some of the major predicaments in the Aerospace and defense industry?

The supply chain realities are indeed challenging, but we continue to find effective solutions to help deal with current market conditions. And our recent Q3 results show that our fundamentals are very strong. We continue to register solid revenues of $1.5 billion and adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter of $210 million—a 48% year over year improvement.

And our aftermarket division noted a 20 percent year over year increase of $372 million for the quarter, a truly outstanding number given our multiple challenges we have faced this year.

Can you tell us about the latest project that you have been working on and what are some of the technological and process elements that you leveraged to make the project successful?

From a new product perspective, our new flagship for a new era, the Global 8000 aircraft, stands out. Introduced at EBACE earlier this year, this immaculate business jet features an industry-leading range of 8,000 nautical miles, the lowest cabin altitude, and an unbeatable top speed of Mach 0.94.

It truly is the ultimate all-in-one business aircraft, offering our customers a unique blend of outstanding performance married with the smoothest ride and an uncompromising passenger experience—the absolute leader in the long-range class. The aircraft is expected to enter service in 2025.

Our innovative design teams also upped the ante by introducing at NBAA-BACE in October, a brand new three-cabin option for this aircraft, complementing the existing fourzone option. 

Our new Executive cabin debuts a unique open office concept and spacious three workspace interior designed to maximize corporate collaboration, productivity, and networking with fellow passengers. With its three workspaces, each 12 feet in length, the Executive cabin offers the unprecedented flow and leg room, enabling teams to creatively utilize space to remain productive in flight and rested on arrival for meetings or events.

“Our innovative design teams also upped the ante by introducing at nbaa-bace in october, a brand new threecabin option for this aircraft, complementing the existing four-zone option”

In terms of our aftermarket business, Bombardier continues to offer its customer new and exciting products and services to continuously deliver service excellence, including the expansion of our worldwide infrastructure footprint by more than 50%. Earlier this year, Bombardier celebrated the inauguration of our enhanced Singapore Service Centre; the opening of our new service facility in Melbourne, Australia; the inauguration of our 300,000 sq. ft. facility in Miami, FL; and later this month, will celebrate the expansion of our London Biggin Hill Service Centre—the largest MRO facility in the UK.

Which are some of the technological trends which excite you for the future of the Aerospace and defense industry?

The introduction of the Global 8000, notwithstanding, I am particularly excited about several initiatives Bombardier is making its commitment to sustainable aviation. We have made many advancements in this area, including introducing:

• Our Environmental Product Declaration on the Global 7500, where the design for the environment was embedded into the aircraft before its launch

• The incremental aircraft improvements that note a 13% lower emission on the Global 6500 aircraft compared to its predecessor

• Sustainable materials offered on the Challenger 3500 aircraft as well as an eco app solution designed specifically to optimize flight plans and reduce fuel burn

We are also rethinking how aircraft are designed to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2050 — as pledged at NBAA-BACE in 2021.

The introduction of our Ecodemonstrator at EBACE in May follows in this ongoing commitment. The ecodemonstrator is not a new aircraft, but it is an important research platform, a prototype model, that integrates future technologies to help us understand how they work together and test the feasibility of some of our ideas.

Bombardier also works in partnership with select research universities in Canada as well as industry partners in program development, and together we’re modeling, building, and testing these prototype models of future sustainable air vehicles (what we currently call eco-demonstrator).

Another important initiative, announced at NBAA-BACE, is our new partnership with Signature Aviation regarding SAF fuel. Bombardier has long been a leader in the use and stewardship of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) and this multi-year agreement for the purchase of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) quantities, utilizing the Book and Claim system, covers all of Bombardier’s flight operations starting in January 2023. The agreement is the first of its kind for a business aviation original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and it reinforces both companies’ leadership role in the promotion, adoption, and widespread use of SAF.

It’s all about drawing on the innovation and creativity of not only our teams but industry partners to find long-term solutions to changing environmental realities.

How can budding and evolving companies reach you for suggestions to streamline their business?

As noted in the examples above, Bombardier continues to work closely with industry partners and its suppliers to continue to create innovative products and services for its customers to deliver the best experience in business aviation. We are always open to interacting with innovative companies to ensure we lead the industry in design and customer excellence.