Bombardier Aerospace's Learjet 85 aircraft development program continues to forge ahead. Development and production teams in Wichita, Kansas; Montréal, Québec; Belfast, Northern Ireland; and Querétaro, Mexico, are actively engaged as work has transitioned from the detail design phase to the build, test and validate phase. The Learjet 85 aircraft program is moving towards its scheduled entry-into-service in 2013.

"The Learjet 85 aircraft program has entered a new phase and is progressing towards entry- into-service with great strength," said Ralph Acs, Vice President, Learjet 85, Bombardier Business Aircraft. "The synergies achieved by working with people from across our Bombardier Aerospace sites have proven extremely successful in the advancement of the program."

In April 2011, the Integrated Product Development Team (IPDT) completed the aircraft level critical design review, a major product development milestone. The supply base is fully engaged in the preparation and commissioning of systems test rigs, enabling the various suppliers to exercise their respective systems, identify and implement corrective action prior to supplying parts to the final assembly line in Wichita. Methods and logistics teams are now coordinating production tooling, as well as sourcing and expediting parts to be shipped to the Querétaro site.

In Montréal, the IPDT is focused on completing the last production drawings for the test aircraft and, in Wichita, the construction of the Learjet 85 aircraft final assembly line building, the first of four phases of the site expansion, has begun.

The Belfast team successfully manufactured the first production wing spars using its innovative Resin Transfer Infusion (RTI) technology, and wing skins are currently in production. Both the spars and skins will be shipped to the Querétaro facility for final wing assembly.

Production of parts has begun at the Mexico Manufacturing Centre in Querétaro, and the production of the majority of composite parts for the first aircraft is underway.There are currently 1,300 employees working on the Learjet 85 aircraft program across Bombardier's sites in Belfast, Mexico, Montréal and Wichita.