Firm Turboprop Orders Now Total 300 Aircraft

Bombardier Aerospace announced Monday Grupo SATA (Sociedade Acoriana de Transportes Aereos, S.A.) of Ponta Delgada, Portugal recently signed a contract to acquire four Q400 NextGen aircraft for its SATA Air Acores regional airline.

Based on the list price of the Q400 NextGen aircraft, the value of the contract is approximately $113 million US.

SATA Air Acores has been in operation for more than 60 years and serves all nine islands of the Azores as well as Madeira and the Canary Islands. Its Q400 aircraft will be configured with 80 passenger seats.

"Our current aircraft have been in service for a number of years and it is time to replace them with new-technology, more economical aircraft," said Antonio Gomes de Menezes, Chairman, Grupo SATA. "The Bombardier Q400 aircraft meets all of our requirements for increased passenger and cargo capacity, cabin comfort, lower fuel consumption and improved environmental compatibility."

Mr. Gomes de Menezes and the SATA team were joined by Bombardier's Senior Vice-President of Sales, Jim Dailly, and five other Bombardier executives in Ponta Delgada today for a signing ceremony.

"The Q400 airliner continues to lead the resurgence of the turboprop market and we are delighted that SATA Air Acores has selected the aircraft for its fleet replacement," said Steven Ridolfi, President, Bombardier Regional Aircraft. "The aircraft's low operating costs, near-jet speed and excellent cabin amenities make it a perfect solution for many short- to medium-haul regional airline operations."

The order announced today increases firm orders for Q400 aircraft to 300, with 190 delivered as of January 31, 2008. Grupo SATA is the fifth new customer for Bombardier this year.

FMI: www.bombardier.com, www.sata.pt