Source: Reuters Author: Padraic Halpin, Andras Gergely 01/19/2010
Subject Concerned: Aircraft
Canada's Bombardier Inc, the world's third-biggest civil aircraft maker, said it should be able to land a fresh order for its new CSeries aircraft in the first half of its next business year.
Bombardier's Commercial Aircraft President Gary Scott said however he was unlikely to meet earlier hopes of getting another order in the current business year, which runs to the end of January.
"A few months ago we thought (there was) a chance of another order," Scott told reporters at an event in Dublin. "We are still in advanced discussions with some customers. There's not a lot of time left. It's going to be difficult to get orders done in next two weeks but (we are) optimistic for the first half of the fiscal year."
He said Bombardier was on track to launch the new 100-to-149-seat aircraft model in the latter part of 2013.
Bombardier last month said a prolonged slump in aerospace pulled down its third-quarter profit by 26 percent even as its rail-equipment business flourished, but it forecast a gradual improvement in aircraft orders next year.
"We're going through one of the worst times," Scott said. "Our customers are bleeding and in no position to buy airplanes."
"We hope industry and ourselves have seen the bottom," he added.