Republic Airways Holdings is to be the CSeries launch customer in North America having signed a deal for 40 CS300s, with options for up to an additional 40 aircraft.
The aircraft, which will be configured in a single-cabin, with two-by-three seating for 138 passengers, including 25 Stretch seats, are scheduled for delivery from the second quarter of 2015. Based on the list price for the CS300 aircraft, the contract is valued at approximately $3.06 billion, which could increase to approximately $6.34 billion if all options are exercised.
The aircraft are powered by Pratt & Whitney PurePower PW1524G engines and Republic has signed an exclusive 15-year PureSolution maintenance contract with the OEM for the support of the engines. The agreement with P&W is for 80 firm plus six spare engines.
"Republic is pleased to be the North American launch customer for the CSeries aircraft," remarked Bryan Bedford, chairman, president and CEO of Republic Airways.
Speaking during the company’s 4th quarter conference call, Bedford commented, “We’re really excited to partner with Bombardier and Pratt & Whitney in the development of the CSeries programme, because we fundamentally believe that this is a game-changing technology that will position our company for long-term success.
“There’s no doubt that the industry is looking for next-generation technologies, in terms of aircraft efficiency, passenger comfort, lower fuel costs and impact on the environment. The CSeries will deliver all of those attributes,” he added.
“The market is competitive and this was a wonderful opportunity for Republic to make a move with the CSeries and position our business for prosperity. We spent a lot of time looking at this technology, in the factory with Bombardier. This isn’t a paper aeroplane. These guys are building this aircraft and if it does the things that they represent it will do – and we have every confidence that it will – then we’re going to have some great flexibility as these aircraft come into our portfolio in 2015.”
Without going into the specifics of the deal regarding deposits, Hal Cooper, Republic’s executive vice-president and chief financial officer, noted that “the way [the deal] was structured, it’s cash friendly to us over the next two to three years. It does not put a cash squeeze on our business”.
"The CSeries is a significant part of Bombardier's future, and we're delighted that Republic Airways will be part of it," declared Gary Scott, president, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft. "This major CSeries order from our first North American customer reflects the confidence Republic Airways has in Bombardier's ability to deliver a game-changing aircraft and to service the airline's requirements."
"Having a major operator like Republic Airways select our technology expands the reach and scope of the PurePower engine programme," added Todd Kallman, president, Pratt & Whitney Commercial Engines & Global Services. "We now have more than 400 PW1000G engines on order, if options are exercised, representing operators based in Europe, Asia and North America."
Since launching the CSeries family at Farnborough 2008, Bombardier now has a total 90 firm orders for CSeries aircraft. Alongside Republic Airways, Lufthansa Group has an order for 30 CS100s, and Lease Corporation International Group has 17 CS300s and three CS100 on firm order. The programme also has options for an additional 90 aircraft.
Bernie Baldwin
Editor, Low-Fare & Regional Airlines/LARAnews.net
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