Bombardier pushes CSeries test flight back six months

Bombardier announced (07-Nov-2012) it has delayed the first test flight for its CSeries aircraft from late 2012 to the end of Jun-2013. The delay is due to "certain issues, mainly related to some suppliers". Bombardier stated together with all its suppliers, the company is working with the momentum gained over the last few months in order to fly by the revised date, which all parties have agreed is achievable. Bombardier reported the development programme is making solid progress, with the build for both the Complete Airframe Static Test (CAST) and the first flight test aircraft progressing well. Results from the integrated systems test and certification rig are as expected and we have met a number. Bombardier expects entry-into-service of the CS100 aircraft will occur approximately one year after first flight. The timeline for the CS300 aircraft remains unchanged with entry-into-service scheduled for the end of 2014. Bombardier CEO Pierre Beaudoin said the Dec-2012 time frame "had been set to keep suppliers to hard deadline, but some components are complex, and it made no sense to get some parts before others for the assembly". Mr Beaudoin said he does not expect any delays in CSeries orders due to the test flight push back.