At The Cutting Edge: Bombardier Business Aircraft Continued from page 27 built at Bombardier’s Toronto facility while their interior is completed in Montreal. ABJ Did you add any new production facilities or announce any expansion plans recently? DC In February of this year, we announced the next major investment in enhancing our global customer service experience with a significant expansion in the growing Asia-Pacific region. Located at Seletar Aerospace Park, our award-winning Singapore Service Center will more than quadruple its current footprint, transforming the facility into a high-capacity, one-stop-shop super center, offering Bombardier Business Aircraft operators in the region the full gamut of maintenance, refurbish- ment and modification services directly on site. Not only does this expansion bring convenience to our operators in the Asia-Pacific region, it is the next step in our effort to increase accessibility to our unparal- leled OEM expertise for our Bombardier Business Aircraft customers globally. It is a key part of our grow- ing worldwide services network. Last year, we also announced the growth of our North American maintenance capabilities, with the construction of an expanded service center at Miami- Opa Locka Executive Airport, to be inaugurated in 2020. This facility will more than double our current service footprint in Florida—a huge advantage for operators in the region. We also added five Mobile Response Team (MRT) trucks to our fleet of U.S. stationed vehicles to boost capability while supple- menting parts shipping from our Chicago parts hub. This addition brought our worldwide total to 30 trucks, enhancing the MRT’s reach and response times. In Europe, we unveiled the latest addition to our European line maintenance stations (LMS), located at Le Bourget Airport near Paris, France. This facil- ity was the seventh line maintenance station to be opened within two years. Earlier this year, we also added a dedicated Challenger 300 aircraft to boost mobile response capability in the region and to supplement shipping from our Frankfurt parts distribu- tion hub, further strengthening Bombardier Business Aircraft’s OEM support services offering for its growing European customer base. 28 This second MRT aircraft joins a dedicated Learjet 45 aircraft in Chicago, along with two main- tenance control centres (MCCs) in Linz, Austria and Wichita, Kansas. The MCCs work in conjunction with Bombardier’s Customer Response Centre, which oper- ates 24/7 to streamline customer requests and opti- mize maintenance support. Last summer, we announced the opening of a new showroom and regional office in New York City. The centrally located space in one of the world’s largest financial centres brings us closer to where our custom- ers do business, further strengthening relationships with key stakeholders in the region who frequently travel through the hub. This office extends our com- mitment to the U.S. where we have a strong customer base, as well as an extensive service and manufactur- ing footprint. Being close to our customers, wherever they may be globally, has secured Bombardier’s repu- tation for strong client relationships and exceptional experiences. We’ve learned the value of staying close to our customers and providing them with easy access to our team. All of these major investments, expansions, and bolstering of Bombardier Business Aircraft’s support presence are a part of our commitment to providing our customers worldwide with the support they need, whenever and wherever they need it. ABJ You build and service the most comprehensive portfolio of business aircraft of any OEM, from light jets to large cabin, long range jets. Among these is the Challenger 350, which I would call a mid-range, medium-large aircraft, with about half the range of your largest, longest range jets. In what ways, then, does the Challenger 350 fit into your big cabin, long- range product line? DC The Challenger 350 aircraft was designed with a no- compromise approach that continues to define the super mid-size category. It outsells the nearest com- petitor in its segment 2:1, and is the most successful business jet platform of the last decade, worldwide. With a true seats-full, tanks-full, 3,200 NM (5,926 km) range capability, it offers a direct climb to 43,000 feet to stay clear of weather and traffic, as well as the Aviation Business Journal | Spring 2019
