Bombardier chairman Laurent Beaudoin said his company is in business to make a profit, and that it will not pursue its newly-announced 90-seat airliner if it determines it can not make a reasonable return.

"For that airplane, for the range it's in, price and cost is a hell of an issue," Beaudoin said. "We won't go in if we don't have a margin."

The company has been looking at the approximately 100-seat market for several years, most recently with an aircraft that would have been fitted with the wing for the Global Express. However, that solution proved too complex, and too expensive, for its customer base.

"We're trying to design the airplane to be as economical as possible," Beaudoin said. The company will spend the next year defining the product with prospective customers, and also will begin looking for full risk-sharing partners, as it did with the Global Express ultra-long-range business jet. Those partners, he said, have invested in the development program, participated in the design process, and also carry inventory cost.

He said that Bombardier has looked at jets in the fewer than 50-seat class, but does not believe it's economically possible to produce one, despite Embraer's presence-and success-in the market. Beaudoin said turboprops are a better solution, and that the EMB135 is only viable because of government subsidies, which Bombardier has challenged. The issue is under review by the World Trade Organization.

Beaudoin acknowledged that others have struggled in the much-talked about segment of the market, even while others plan to enter. Fokker went under pushing its 70- and 100-seaters, and Boeing has struggled to win orders for its 717. Airbus intends to enter the market with the 318 while Fairchild Dornier said it too will be a player. All that on top of British Aerospace, which already is selling its RJ family.

Still, Beaudoin said Bombardier will take a different tack than the others. Fokker, he said, priced its aircraft too low to make a profit and went bankrupt. The Airbus and Boeing offerings are heavier and larger aircraft not purpose-built for the regional market, and the BAe aircraft-while having a copious cabin-is expensive to operate due with its four-engine configuration.

He defines his planned new aircraft as sitting in the middle of the 80-to-110-seat market. "That's where the design has to be if we want to be economical," he said. "If our design point is around 95 seats, you can go up to about 110 by adding fuselage sections, or you can remove some and go down to 80 or 85 seats."

As for Fairchild, Beaudoin questioned the company's ability to deliver for the amount of money they've talked about. "Maybe they've found a new way to do it," he said. "It's a major task for us, so I'm sure its a major task for them." Bombardier, he said, is steeped in engineering talent, has plenty of experience in certifying new aircraft, and has a track record that should give it an advantage in attracting customers.

"It's all there, and we've demonstrated what we can do," he said.

By Perry Bradley