In the 1970s and 1980s, the company diversified into public transport vehicles and commercial jets and became a multinational corporation. It grew particularly fast at the end of the 1980s when the turnover multiplied sixfold within six years. At that time it was North America's most important producer of railway vehicles, Canada's most important aerospace producer and the worldwide leading snowmobile manufacturer. The growth came mainly from buying failing government-owned companies at a low price and orchestrating a turnaround.[3]
However, the launch of the CSeries aircraft sent the company into deep debt, pushing it to the brink of bankruptcy by 2015. As a result, the company sold nearly all of its operations except business jet manufacturing.
Bombardier manufactures two families of corporate jets, the Global and Challenger. On May 18, 2021, the Global 7500/8000 series during testing became the first business jet to break the sound barrier and the fastest civil aircraft since the Concorde. [4]
With deliveries of 138 business jets in 2023, Bombardier was the number one manufacturer of business jets in the world. [5]
Corporate affairs
The key trends of Bombardier are (as at the financial year ending December 31):
In 1986, Bombardier acquired Canadair for C$120 million from the Government of Canada after it recorded the largest corporate loss in Canadian history.[10]
In July 2018, Airbus acquired a 50.01% stake in the CSeries for one Canadian dollar, with an option to acquire the remaining interest by 2024.[23][24] Airbus built a second CSeries assembly line at its A320 assembly facility in Mobile, Alabama.[25]
In March 2019, the company sold its Business Aircraft Training business to CAE Inc. for $645 million. The business included flight simulators and training devices for the Bombardier Learjet, Challenger, and Global product lines.[27]
On 25 June 2019, Bombardier agreed with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to sell the CRJ programme, a deal was expected to close in early 2020 subject to regulatory approval.[28] Bombardier will retain the Mirabel assembly facility and produce the CRJ on behalf of Mitsubishi until the current order backlog is complete.[29]
In October 2019, Bombardier announced the sale agreement of its remaining aerostructure division to US company Spirit AeroSystems.[30] The division at time of sale involved component manufacture for new and after-market Bombardier group and Airbus group aircraft models, and also operated in aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul. Due to how the 2020 pandemic affected the industry, the agreement was renegotiated with the sale to Spirit concluded finally in October 2020.[31] Bombardier's former aerostructures division purchased by Spirit consisted at time of sale of operations in Belfast, UK; Casablanca, Morocco; and Dallas, USA.[32]
The 2019-20, aerostructures division sell-off was described at the time as supporting Bombardier's "strategic decision to reposition itself as a pure-play business aircraft company".[32]
In February 2020, Airbus acquired an additional 25% stake in the A220 for US$591 million. This transaction was the final step to get Bombardier Aviation out of the commercial jet industry.[33]
In December 2022, Bombardier broke ground on the new service center at the Abu Dhabi International Airport. This new facility in Abu Dhabi will be Bombardier’s first full-service facility in the United Arab Emirates.[34]
Bombardier Capital
From 1973, when it was based in Colchester, Vermont, Bombardier Capital offered financial services such as lending and leasing.
CIÉ looked for partners to build these buses in Ireland, eventually finding two: Bombardier, and the United States-based General Automotive Corporation (GAC) from Ann Arbor, Michigan.[41] The two companies formed a new company Bombardier Ireland Limited, 51% owned by Bombardier and 49% owned by GAC. In August 1983, Bombardier sold its shares to GAC, with the company renamed GAC Ireland Limited.[42][43]
In 1996, the company was selected as the lead developer for the Acela Express trains, the fastest trains in North America, in a $710 million contract. Problems with the trains resulted in lawsuits between the company and Amtrak.[46]
In 2001, Bombardier acquired Adtranz (DaimlerChrysler Rail Systems), a manufacturer of trains which were widely used throughout Germany and Great Britain, becoming one of the largest manufacturers of railway rolling stock in the world.[47][48] This division produced the Bombardier Turbostar.
On February 13, 2020, Alstom agreed to buy the Bombardier Transportation division for €7 billion.[49] The acquisition deal was completed on January 29, 2021.[50]
Bombardier was a mechanic who dreamed of building a vehicle that could "float on snow".[52] In 1935, in a repair shop in Valcourt, Quebec, he designed and produced the first snowmobile using a drive system he developed that revolutionized travel in snow and swampy conditions.
In 1937, he patented and sold 12 of the 7-passenger "B7" snow coaches.[53] They were used in rural Quebec to take children to school, carry freight, deliver mail, and as ambulances. In 1941, Bombardier opened a factory in Valcourt.[54]
In 1942, L'Auto-Neige Bombardier Limitée ("Bombardier Snow Car Limited") was founded in Valcourt.[55]
During World War II, the Government of Canada issued wartime rationing regulations. Bombardier customers had to prove that snowmobiles were essential to their livelihood in order to buy one. The company then shifted its focus to the arms industry.[54]
In 1947, during a blizzard in Saskatchewan, the company received positive press coverage when army snowmobiles resupplied isolated radio communication towers.[56]
In 1948, the Government of Quebec passed a law requiring all roads to be cleared of snow; Bombardier's sales fell by nearly half in one year. Armand Bombardier therefore decided to diversify his business, first by producing tracked snowplows sized specifically for use on municipal sidewalks, replacing horse-drawn vehicles, then by making all-terrain vehicles for the mining, petroleum, and forestry industries.[54]
The machines had removable front skis that could be replaced with front wheels for use on paved or hard surfaces, thus providing greater utility to his large snowmobiles. In 1951, the wooden bodies were replaced with sheet steel, and these vehicles were powered by Chrysler flathead six-cylinder engines and 3-speed manual transmissions.
In the early 1950s, Bombardier focused on developing a snowmobile for 1 or 2 passengers. A breakthrough occurred in 1957 when Bombardier developed a one-piece molded rubber continuous track with enough durability to provide snow-gripping traction for lightweight vehicles. The vehicle was called the "Ski-Dog" because it was meant to replace the dog sled for hunters and trappers. However, in 1958, "Ski-Doo" was accidentally painted on the first prototype, and immediately became the popular name.[51]
The public soon discovered the great fun of speedy vehicles zooming over snow, and a new winter sport was born, centered in Quebec. In the first year, Bombardier sold 225 Ski-Doos; four years later, 8,210 were sold. Bombardier slowed promotion of the Ski-Doo line to prevent it from crowding out other company products, while still dominating the snowmobile industry[57] against competitors Polaris Industries and Arctic Cat.
On February 18, 1964, J. Armand Bombardier died of cancer at age 56. Until then, he oversaw all areas of operation and controlled the research department, making all the drawings himself. The younger generation took over, led by Armand's sons and sons-in-law, reorganizing and decentralizing the company. The company adopted computer inventory, accounting, and billing. Distribution networks were improved and increased, and an incentive program was developed for sales staff.[58] That year, a survey was mailed to Ski-Doo owners to find out how the product was being used.[59] Germain Bombardier, who had been groomed by his father, took over the company upon his father's death in 1964. However, he quit and sold his shares in 1966 after a disagreement with other family members. Laurent Beaudoin, the son-in-law of the founder, then became president, a position he held until 1999.[58] He had joined the company as controller in 1963 and was president for 25 years.[3]
In 1967, the company was renamed Bombardier Limited. By that time, the snowmobiles were very useful for the Inuit.[60]
In 1969–1970, the standard round windows reminiscent of portholes were replaced with larger rectangular windows that provided more interior light. A change was made to the Chrysler Industrial 318 engines with the automatic Loadflite transmissions.[61]
In 1971, Bombardier acquired Moto-Ski.[62] Also in 1971, Bombardier launched Operation SnoPlan, a program to promote snowmobile safety after a mounting death toll due to snowmobile accidents.[63]