After a grounding period of a few months, the Bombardier CSeries flight testing resumed on Sunday, with FTV-2 returning to the sky.
Bombardier CSeries FTV2 taking off, recommencing test flights – Images, Bombardier via Twitter
The flight test resumes after the grounding of the flight flights after an an engine-related incident that occurred on the ground on the 29th May 2014.
This means the CSeries has been restricted to ground tests since then – keeping the plane on the ground for just over three months, with both Bombardier and Pratt and Whitney working on a fix involving the modification of the engine’s oil lubrication system.
FTV2 completed a 35 minute flight from its base in Mirabel, Quebec, landing successfully. The rest of the fleet will return to flight over the year to re-commence the certification process of the aircraft.
Bombardier are happy this aircraft has returned to test, with Rob Dewar, Vice President, CSeries Aircraft Program stating:
“We are pleased to see the CSeries aircraft back in the air. The geared turbofan (GTF) engine has over 10,000 hours of ground and flight testing and we’re confident that it will enter into service meeting or exceeding the fuel burn, emissions, thrust and noise specifications, as promised by Pratt & Whitney.
Aircraft flight test programs are complex and involve extreme testing meant to draw out any potential issues and correct them prior to entry-into-service”
Bombardier indicate that the first CSeries-100 is still due to be delivered to airlines in the second half of 2015, with the CS300 following behind six month later.
Attention will still be on Bombardier to deliver the CSeries – with 203 firm orders and total options of 513 CSeries aircraft, and the hope for some airlines that these new aircraft are delivered in time, without any further major issues during testing.
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