How Bombardier plans to make it big in India

Bombardier, the Canadian aircraft maker, is set to make its mark in India's rapidly growing commercial aviation sector.

Four Q400 next-generation turboprop aircraft are being prepped at its facility in Toronto, to be handed over to SpiceJet in India at a ceremony this week, the first batch in the latter's order for 15 of the aircraft, with options for an additional 15.

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SpiceJet has said the turboprops would be used on new regional routes connecting smaller cities in India, with the service scheduled to begin on September 21.

For Bombardier Aerospace, the $8.6-billion division of the $17.7-billion parent company headquartered in Montreal, it will be the first major presence in the Indian commercial aviation market.

As more Indian carriers look at servicing smaller centres, Bombardier is hopeful of leveraging that growing market to its advantage.

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"It's a very exciting opportunity," said Brian Schmalz, director, marketing, commercial aircraft, arguing their planes would be a good fit for expansion of commercial aviation in India.

"Airlines have largely focused on major cities so far and are now looking to connect with smaller cities. That's what Bombardier's product line is centred around."

The Canadian company offers three families of airplanes: The 70-80 seater Q400 turboprops, the 60-99 seater medium-haul CRJ jets and the mainline 100-149 seater C-series jets, scheduled to enter into service in 2013.

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So far, according to Schmalz, Bombardier's footprint in India has been limited to a few CRJ aircraft.

The company sees India as one of its most promising markets in the coming years. Company officials estimate airlines in India will need at least 600 aircraft over the next 20 years, noting the country leads the world's rapidly growing aviation markets in percentage growth, albeit from a low base.

"We are talking to several Indian airlines about all our products and see plenty of near-term and long-term opportunities," said Schmalz, though he declined to name any potential customers.

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At the Paris Air Show in June, officials from GoAir had said they were considering the C-series aircraft for their airline.

Schmalz listed Bombardier's advantages, saying the new C-series would burn 20 per cent less fuel than other models in its category.

He also described the CRJ family as the 'most economical regional jets' and said the Q400 was very fast for a turboprop.

"In India, air traffic systems are very congested, so the speed of the Q400 gives its operators an advantage," he said.

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Asked if his company was worried about recent reverses in India's aviation industry Bombardier's client, SpiceJet, just reported a Rs 72-crore (Rs 720-million) quarterly loss -- Schmalz said it was a cyclical business.

But, was confident it would prove a profitable business in India. He added, "SpiceJet has a good business model."

Adding that India also faced a problem common to many developing countries: "Demand is growing much faster than infrastructure."