Bahrain 2012: Bombardier bullish about CSeries

Although Bombardier was tight-lipped about the possibility of announcing orders for the CSeries prior to the show, there is speculation that announcements are in the offing.

It announced several orders for the type for undisclosed customers around last year’s Paris Air Show and Gulf Air’s name has been linked with the type for some time.

Acquiring the CSeries would fit Gulf Air’s policy of increasingly concentrating on regional services; it has been operating two Embraer 170s and two larger Embraer 190s in this role since 2010.

Bombardier has also been holding long-running on-off talks with rapidly-expanding Qatar Airways, whose chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, is on record as saying that the Canadian twinjet is still potentially in line for an order, despite the Doha-based airline signing for Airbus A319neo airliners as part of a large order for the neo family. Qatar sees the aircraft as handling specific niche destinations.

Any deals would naturally be welcome for Bombardier, whose order book for the CSeries is still regarded by many commentators as thin considering the time the aircraft has been on offer.

The airframer was buoyed by a cluster of orders last summer and in November announced a letter of intent with Turkey’s low-cost carrier, Atlasjet, for 10 CS300s, plus five options.

It has also this month announced not only that it has plans for an all-business class version of the CS100 but also that it is in advanced discussions with potential customers for the variant. Premium airline news provider Air Transport Intelligence reported that the type was being lined up for a new operator to use on services between London City Airport and New York JFK.

This route is currently served by British Airways using a 32-seat Airbus A318, which has proved popular but has its fuel load hampered by the short runway length at London City. This requires it to refuel at Shannon, in Ireland, on the westbound sector. The stop adds around 45 minutes to the trip; on the plus side, it allows passengers to clear US immigration before reaching JFK.

This year sees a critical milestone for the CSeries. If the development programme remains on schedule the CS100 prototype will make its maiden flight in the second half of the year, with first deliveries due in late-2013.

While having a real aircraft that customers can touch and walk around is obviously a major plus for any sales team, the interactive CSeries dome on show at BIAS is the next-best thing. Unveiled a couple of months ago at the Dubai show, the dome – positioned in the static park opposite the chalet line – can expect to see a steady stream of visitors keen to get a feel for the type’s cabin and cockpit.

While Bombardier has talked of the CSeries programme gaining momentum over the past year, and while the burst of orders around the Paris Air Show helped stall further criticism, the pace of that acceleration is still regarded by some industry observers as slow. Any boost that the Canadian company could announce at BIAS would be welcome.