As expected, Mitsubishi and Bombardier have agreed to buy the Canadian company’s CRJ regional jet program. Japan’s planmaker will pay $ 550 million for the rights of models such as the CRJ550, CRJ700 and CRJ900, and assume about $ 200 million in liabilities.
The contract, which will be finalized by the first half of 2020, includes the acquisition of aircraft as well as maintenance, support, refurbishment, marketing and sales activities for the CRJ Series aircraft, including the related services and support network located in Montréal, Québec , and Toronto, Ontario, and its service centers located in Bridgeport, West Virginia, and Tucson, Arizona, as well as the type certificates.
The CRJ jet production facility will continue in Mirabel, Quebec, where it will be manufactured by the end of 2020 – just over 40 orders in Bombardier’s backlog.
“As we outlined during the recent Paris Air Show, we are working hard to ensure that we provide new profit potential for airlines and set a new standard for passenger experience. This transaction represents one of the most important steps in our strategic journey to build a strong, global aviation capability, “said Seiji Izumisawa, CEO of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, owner of the aviation division.
“We are very pleased to announce this agreement, which represents the completion of Bombardier’s aerospace transformation,” said Alain Bellemare, CEO of Bombardier. “We are confident that MHI’s acquisition of the program is the best solution for airline customers, employees and shareholders. We are committed to ensuring smooth and orderly transition. ”
Strategic information
With the sale of the CRJ series, Bombardier completes its aviation restructuring. Earlier, the company had already passed the C Series to Airbus and its turboprops to Longview. From now on, the Canadian company will focus only on the business jet market – in addition to its important rail division.
For Mitsubishi, taking over Canadian jets matters more for access to a whole bundle of customers, services and after-sales processes that it does not have yet.
It’s something like the Japanese entering the market with dozens of customers in their portfolio and hundreds of planes delivered even before SpaceJet, their most important product, debuts in aviation. A unique boost.
