Odyssey Airlines

[Beflightman]

Une petite nouvelle dans le ciel, cela risque de bouger au salon du Bourget. A suivre.

Source: Flightglobal.

Bombardier appears to have identified Odyssey Airlines as the previously undisclosed customer behind a CSeries order, which is set to be unveiled at the Paris air show later this month.

Senior vice-president, commercial, Chet Fuller had been detailing the airframer's plans for the show during a media briefing ahead of the 69th IATA Annual General Meeting in Cape Town.

"We are going to have an event at Paris where we are going to invite Malmo, and we will invite Odyssey," he said, before appearing to correct himself to say, "an undisclosed customer who will become disclosed".

Fuller added: "We will invite Swiss and Porter and what we are going to talk about is the CS100 and what it's doing to open up new markets."

Malmo Aviation, Swiss International Air Lines and Porter Airlines have all been previously announced as CSeries operators.

Media reports in late 2011 had suggested a UK start-up called Odyssey Airlines planned to operate CS100s on non-stop all-business class flights from London City to New York. The airframer has never confirmed that the company was a customer.

Bombardier said in January 2012 that it was in "advanced negotiations" with customers for an all-business class CS100 that could be operated non-stop on that route.

Fuller, citing today the reasons behind why some CSeries customers chose the aircraft, said: "Other customers chose the aircraft for what it can do out of London City."

Swiss has indicated it would operate the CS100 out of London City. Yet another customer, which remains undisclosed, plans to operate the aircraft out of a "47 [Celsius] runway", says Fuller.

Bombardier has logged 145 firm orders for the CSeries, part of over 400 commitments including firm and conditional orders and options.