Belfast Bombardier to benefit from £1bn Airbus order increase

Bombardier will benefit from an order increase worth £1bn from Delta airlines, with some of the work to be carried out in Belfast. This follows the recent announcement of 490 job losses in Bombardier's NI locations.

The past few years haven't been smooth sailing for Bombardier's NI presence, with several rounds of layoffs occuring across the company. Back in November, Bombardier confirmed that it would be making 5,000 job cuts worldwide including 490 in Northern Ireland as part of a push to reduce the production cost of its Airbus A220 medium-range jet airliner (previously named the Bombardier C-series).

Belfast Telegraph now reports that Airbus has received an additional £1bn in orders for the A220 as Delta Airlines has increased its demand for the larger versons of the craft. The wings for the A220 are made by Bombardier in Belfast, but the whole craft will actually be assembled in a still-to-be-built factory in the United States.

Bombardier has cut jobs several times since 2015, citing challenges such as a drop in demand for private jets. Airbus confirmed that it has delivered 20 A220 since the deal in July, and that its sales of commercial aircraft actually rose by 11% in 2018 to a total of 800 aircraft delivered. "As we look to further increase our industrial efficiency, we will continue making the digitalisation of our business a key priority,"said Guillaume Faury, president of Airbus Commercial Aircraft.

Source: Belfast Telegraph, Delta News Hub