The transition is partially fueled by acquisition of GrandView Aviation’s entire fleet of 17 Phenom 300 and 300E aircraft at a purchase price of $105 million.
Honeywell expects to more than double the fleet of HTF7000 engines over the next decade as it seeks to develop a next-generation successor for the 2030s.
Fractional ownership provider Airshare, based in Lenexa, Kansas, has purchased three Challenger 350 super midsize jets from Bombardier with an option for 17 more over the next few years, doubling the size of its fleet.
VistaJet has taken delivery of the first two of up to 12 Bombardier Global 7500 ultra-long-range business jets and identified itself as the customer behind a December order with Bombardier for 10 new Challenger 350 business jets.
Bombardier is enhancing the cabin of its Challenger 350 super midsize jet, with high-speed Ka-band connectivity, a refreshed user cabin management system interface and an expanded selection of cabin designs.
Bombardier Business Aircraft is offering a Rockwell Collins Head-Up Display and Enhanced Vision System as an option on Challenger 350 super midsized business jets.
By William Garvey, Jessica A. Salerno, Molly McMillin
Bombardier Aerospace has achieved delivery milestones on the Challenger 650 and 350. The company has surpassed 200 deliveries of its Challenger 350 super-midsize aircraft and has made more than 50 deliveries of its Challenger 650 large-cabin aircraft.
The Challenger 300 is a tough act to follow. When it made its debut in late 2003, it instantly became a modern day and more affordable successor to the Gulfstream II, with plenty of thrust, a generously sized wing and sporty performance. Similar to the GII, it had transcontinental U.S. range, a flat floor, room for eight in a double club cabin, inflight baggage access and rock-solid reliability. If it had wide oval cabin windows and a heavy-iron price tag, people might have thought it was built in Savannah, Ga., rather than Montreal.
Designers attempt to give exceptional capabilities in all areas, including price, but the laws of physics, thermodynamics and aerodynamics do not allow one aircraft to do all missions with equal efficiency. Tradeoffs are a reality of aircraft design.
Bombardier's Challenger 300, now being delivered to customers in the green configuration, will still resemble the business aircraft they ordered four years ago. The then-named Continental had its official launch at the Paris air show in 1999. The corporate jet has seen its schedule slip by about six months and its payload with full fuel capacity has declined slightly. However, the twin-engine business jet appears to be meeting all other initial goals, including range, price and field performance.
