Parts Being Manufactured, Tested In Mexico, Ireland,
Wichita
Production of the new new Learjet 85 aircraft has officially
begun as the program successfully exited the Aircraft Level
Critical Design Review. Development and production teams in
Wichita, Kansas; Montréal, Québec; Belfast, Northern
Ireland; and Querétaro, Mexico, are actively engaged in the
manufacturing validation phase.
“We have made solid progress,” said Ralph Acs
(pictured), Vice President and General Manager, Learjet, Bombardier
Business Aircraft, in a news conference Sunday at the NBAA
convention in Las Vegas. “Our manufacturing sites are ready,
production has begun, we have been successfully building parts and
we are ensuring that all quality standards are met for the Learjet
85 aircraft’s entry into service in 2013.”
The Querétaro site is operational with production tooling
in place. To date, several test fuselages and key elements of the
composite structure have been produced at the facility to validate
the manufacturing and assembly processes. In addition, a
full-length composite fuselage has been assembled, and production
of the first flight test vehicle is underway.
In Wichita, the first phase of expansion is complete and the
site is ready for the start of final assembly. Phase two of the
expansion plan, which includes building a new production flight
facility, is scheduled to begin in 2012, while phase three - the
paint facility and new delivery centre - is on track to be
completed in 2013.
Production of wing spars and planks using Resin Transfer
Infusion (RTI) technology was successfully launched at the Belfast
site in spring 2011. Several sets of spars are now complete, and
shipments to the Querétaro site, where wing assembly will
take place, have begun.
The Learjet 85 aircraft program supply base has started the
fabrication of parts, and is on track with approximately 40 per
cent of dedicated supplier test rigs that are operational, running
their respective systems prior to shipment to the final line. As
part of Bombardier’s technology readiness program, over
12,000 test pieces have been produced to date. The first FAA
structural certification test project was successfully completed
this summer.
There are currently more than 1,700 employees working on the
Learjet 85 aircraft program across Bombardier Aerospace’s
sites worldwide.