First Global 7000 Logs 100 Hours; Second Flight Test Vehicle To Fly Soon

Bombardier Aerospace’s Global 7000 program is “progressing” solidly, with the sole flight-test vehicle, FTV1, having completed more than 100 hours of flight testing, the Canadian aircraft manufacturer has announced. FTV2 is also now complete and has been moved to its dedicated pre-flight bay ahead of its first flight, which is expected “shortly.”

Global 7000 FTV1 “is showing a high level of maturity, demonstrating that we have captured the lessons learned from the C Series [airliner] program,” Alain Bellemare, president and CEO of parent company Bombardier, said during a financial earnings conference call. Both the C Series and the Global 7000, as well as its Global 8000 sibling, employ fly-by-wire control systems.

Meanwhile, Bellemare said that the production wing for the Global 7000 is in final design and expected to be flying on a production-conforming airplane later this year. Bombardier cited issues related to the Global 7000 wing as a factor in its decision for a two-year program delay, and in late December, wing supplier Triumph filed suit against Bombardier over wing development costs.

The Global 7000 remains on track for entry into service in the second half of next year, Bellemare noted. A company spokeswoman told BJT that the follow-on Global 8000 “continues to be part of our development program,” adding that its schedule will be released “later on” in the Global 7000 flight-test program.