$24.3 Million Order

Bombardier Aerospace announced Sunday that Styrian Spirit, an airline based in Graz, Austria, has signed a contract to purchase one 50-seat Bombardier CRJ200 regional jet.

The firm order is valued at approximately $24.3 million.

Founded in 2002, Styrian Spirit already operates three Bombardier CRJ200 jets on routes from Graz to Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Krakow and Zurich.

"The Bombardier CRJ200 is very popular among crews and passengers," said Otmar Lenz, Chief Executive Officer, Styrian Spirit. "It has proven to be very reliable on our route system, which will now be expanded with our new aircraft. The CRJ200 allows Styrian to serve cities in Europe directly from Graz allowing our passengers non-stop service to popular European destinations without having to fly through Vienna.

"The commonality between the CRJ200 and the larger Bombardier CRJ aircraft in crewing, maintenance, spare parts and customer support provides Styrian Spirit with an excellent opportunity for growth," added Lenz.

"We are delighted that Styrian Spirit has chosen to expand its Bombardier CRJ200 fleet," said Steven A. Ridolfi, President, Bombardier Regional Aircraft. "The airline's experience with the CRJ is further proof of the aircraft's reliability, economy and strong passenger appeal."

As of May 31, 2004, the Bombardier CRJ Series program, the largest in regional aircraft history, had received 1,359 firm orders with 1,095 delivered to customers in over 20 countries throughout the Asia-Pacific region, Africa, Europe, North America and South America. Conditional orders and options could boost the CRJ program total to 2506 aircraft.

FMI: www.bombardier.com