Bombardier Begins Manufacturing Major Components For G8000 Prototype

LAS VEGAS—As flight testing continues, Bombardier has begun manufacturing major structural components for the first ultra-long-range Global 8000 production business jet, expected for entry into service in the second half of 2025. The OEM made the  announcement Oct. 21 during a media briefing on the eve of the National Business Aviation Association Conference and Exposition (NBAA-BACE) here.

Manufacturing work is underway at Bombardier facilities in Saint-Laurent, Quebec; Red Oak, Texas’ and Queretaro, Mexico, the company says.

“The program is progressing extremely well,” Bombardier President and CEO Eric Martel said during the briefing. “We are extremely happy with the result—fastest speed, longest range, lowest cabin altitude. . . . It’s coming next year. Despite all the great things we have with the 7500, our engineers have pushed the limit even further to achieve and keep that leadership and be the flagship of this industry.”

Bombardier is offering an upgrade to Global 7500 customers through its Bombardier service centers. Sales have begun. The upgrades will improve the aircraft’s top speed, increase its range and provide customers with lower cabin altitudes, the company says.

The Global 8000 will have a range of 8,000 nm and a top speed of Mach 0.94, which Bombardier says makes it the fastest aircraft since the Concorde, a supersonic airliner.

The Global 8000, which includes four living spaces, competes with Dassault’s Falcon 10X, which has a range of 7,500 nm and a top speed of Mach 0.925 and Gulfstream’s G800 with a range of 8,000 nm at Mach 0.85 and a top speed of Mach 0.925.

Test aircraft amassed more than 300 flight test hours.  Nearly all flight testing has been completed, said Stephen McCullough, Bombardier senior vice president of engineering and product development.

“We’re now at the point where we’ve done the initial testing with [the regulatory] agencies as well,” McCullough said. “We’re sort of on the journey home in terms of the path to certification.”

A final iteration of the aircraft’s software remains to be completed, he said. “We’ve got a very focused attention of where we need to be at the Christmas period. I was in Wichita [where flight testing is taking place] and had a chance to go and see it there and spend a little bit of time with the aircraft. . . . And honestly, it’s maturing very, very well. Three hundred hours builds a lot of confidence.”