Bombardier gets millions from Canada for Global 7000, C Series

The Canadian government will invest $372.5 million in Learjet-parent Bombardier, the company and government announced in a joint news release.

The funding, to be distributed over four years, will support the Montreal-based plane and train maker’s new Global 7000 business jet and C Series passenger jet. Both jets are undergoing flight test in Wichita.

“This contribution from the Government of Canada will secure the highly skilled, well-paying jobs for middle-class Canadians who work in the aerospace sector,” Navdeep Bains, Canada’s minister of innovation, science and economic development, said in the release. “It will also ensure that Canada has a strong, stable and competitive aerospace industry, which is a major driver of economic activity and innovation across the country.”

Aerospace supports 211,000 direct and indirect jobs in Canada and accounts for $28 billion in gross domestic product, the release said.

The release characterized the investment as “repayable contributions” but did not detail repayment terms.

It follows a $1 billion investment from the government of Quebec in the C Series program, announced in October 2015.

Bombardier sought the investment from its home government because of costly delays in the production and certification of its first narrowbody jetliner. Those cost overruns and delays were draining the company of cash, and occurred at the same time Bombardier was developing its large-cabin, long-range Global 7000 and the Learjet 85. Bombardier in early 2015 paused production of the Learjet 85, causing the layoff of 600 workers in Wichita, and later that year canceled the program that was to be the largest Learjet ever made.

This story was originally published February 8, 2017 at 10:06 AM with the headline "Bombardier gets millions from Canada for Global 7000, C Series."