- Bombardier unveiled the first of many academic collaborations on its pan-Canadian and EcoJet Research Project
- Bombardier’s established partnership with the University of Victoria Centre for Aerospace Research (CfAR) and British Columbia’s SME Quaternion Aerospace have declared a shared vision around innovation and the role it plays in a sustainable transformation of the Canadian aerospace industry
- The multi-year EcoJet research project debuted around 15 years ago with a goal to reduce aircraft emissions by up to 50 per cent through aerodynamic and propulsion enhancements
- Bombardier closed trading at C$50.37 per share
Bombardier (TSX:BBD.B) unveiled the first of many academic collaborations on its pan-Canadian and EcoJet Research Project.
Bombardier’s established partnership with the University of Victoria Centre for Aerospace Research (CfAR) and British Columbia’s SME Quaternion Aerospace have declared a shared vision around innovation and the role it plays in a sustainable transformation of the Canadian aerospace industry. This resulted in a collaboration on the flight-testing program of Bombardier’s EcoJet project.
The multi-year EcoJet research project debuted around 15 years ago with a goal to reduce aircraft emissions by up to 50 per cent through aerodynamic and propulsion enhancements. The project uses scaled, autonomous blended wing body test vehicles to advance its technologies. Bombardier began real-world testing of its theoretical emissions reduction work in 2017 with a prototype with a 2.4 metre wingspan (pictured above). The team added that flight-testing will continue over several years to hone data in diverse environments.
These prototypes are now leveraging a flight vehicle with a 5.4-metre-wide demonstrator. The complementary world-renowned expertise of Bombardier as a business aircraft original equipment manufacturer and of the CfAR and Quaternion Aerospace with scale vehicles strengthen the innovation capacities of all parties while fostering new knowledge about the next generation of more sustainable aircraft.
All flight campaigns on blended wing body scale test vehicles, which have been exploring the prototypes’ behavior in free flight and perfecting their radically different flight control laws, are the fruit of this tight collaboration. The collaborative work on the design and fabrication of the EcoJet flight test vehicles involves multidisciplinary teams, combining Québec-based Bombardier engineers and technicians, along with B.C. researchers, engineers and students.
“Now that we have publicly disclosed some aspects of the first phases of the EcoJet flight-testing program, it is important for us to give credit and to share the phenomenal response with our partners who are instrumental to this dimension of the research project,” Stephen McCullough, senior vice president of engineering and product development, Bombardier said in a news release. “Collaboration between local businesses and top academic institutions is key in nurturing a strong and thriving Canadian aerospace industry. Our hand-in-hand work with the University of Victoria is a meaningful example of such innovation pathway that stimulates coast-to-coast skill transfer and talent development.’’
Based in Montreal, Bombardier is a global leader in the design, manufacturing and servicing of business jets. The company has a global fleet of approximately 5,000 aircraft in service across multinational corporations, charter and fractional ownership providers, governments and private individuals. Bombardier aircraft are also deployed in defense roles across the globe.
Bombardier stock closed trading up 3.61 per cent to C$50.37 per share. The stock is down by 23.54 per cent since last year but has gained 2,327.5 per cent since 2019.
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