Trump aviation threats that would hit Bombardier, Gulfstream and others: What we know
US President Donald Trump’s latest complaint threatens to damage the deeply integrated economic relationship between the US and Canada, which also includes business jets.
Trump said in a Truth Social post on Thursday that the US is decertifying the Bombardier Global Express business jet and threatened to impose a 50 per cent import tariff on all planes made in Canada unless the country’s regulators certify four series models produced by US rival Gulfstream.
Trump also said he was “decertifying their Bombardier Global Express and all aircraft made in Canada” until the Gulfstream aircraft were certified.
Transport Canada, which is responsible for Canadian certification, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The IAM, a union representing more than 600,000 workers in North America and thousands of workers in the air transportation and aerospace sector, said Trump’s threats “will cause serious disruption to the North American aerospace industry and put thousands of jobs at risk on both sides of the border.”
John Gradek, a lecturer in aviation and supply chain management at McGill University in Montreal, told CBC News that he was “surprised” by Trump’s anger, given its impact on the industry.
A business jet can cost up to US$80 million, and major carriers such as Delta and American Airlines use Bombardier aircraft in their fleets.
“There has probably been some misunderstanding about the impact such decertification of Canadian aircraft would have on US domestic air services currently operated by US carriers,” he said.
This is what we know so far.
certification process
Under global aviation rules, the country where an aircraft is designed – the US, in the case of Gulfstream – is responsible for the primary certification known as a type certificate, which guarantees the safety of the design.
Other countries usually validate the primary regulator’s decision, allowing aircraft into their airspace, but have the right to refuse or ask for more data.
Following the Boeing 737 Max crisis – in which two planes made by the Chicago-headquartered company crashed in 2018–2019, killing 346 people, including 18 Canadian citizens – some regulators outside the US delayed support of some US certification decisions and sometimes pushed for further design changes.
Path to decertification unclear
Like many of Trump’s announcements on social media during his first term in 2017, the post has created confusion and surprise among some industry players and even parts of his own administration.
It was unclear how Trump would de-certify the planes, as that is the job of the Federal Aviation Administration, but he has made similar declarations in the past that were ultimately accomplished by the relevant agencies, often with exemptions.
The FAA does not appear to have the legal authority to revoke certification of planes based on economic reasons, as it can only do so for safety reasons under existing rules.
John Gradek, a faculty lecturer in aviation management at McGill University in Montreal, says Trump’s comments indicate a misunderstanding of the aircraft certification process, as well as how integrated the aviation industry is in North America, even amid competition among aircraft manufacturers.
Airline officials said that if the US could decertify airplanes for economic reasons, it would give other countries a powerful weapon and could jeopardize the entire aviation system.
“Mixing security issues with politics and complaints is an incredibly bad idea,” said Richard Aboulafia, managing director of Aerodynamic Advisory, a US aerospace management consulting firm.
A White House official told Reuters that Trump was not suggesting decertifying Canadian-made aircraft currently in operation. US airline officials told Reuters that FAA officials had made similar statements.
The FAA declined to immediately comment to Reuters, and The New York Times said the agency referred media questions back to the White House.
bomber
Montreal-based Bombardier said it had taken note of Trump’s posts on social media and was in contact with the Canadian government.
The company said through a spokesperson, “Thousands of private and civilian jets made in Canada fly into the US every day. We hope this will be resolved quickly to avoid a significant impact on air traffic and the flying public.”
The statement said Bombardier’s aircraft, facilities and personnel were fully certified under FAA standards.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant’s latest challenge to Prime Minister Mark Carney comes after she claimed that Carney had retracted his headline-grabbing speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland during talks with US President Donald Trump. Controversy looms over CUSMA renegotiations when the deal is reviewed later this year.
Data provider Cirium said there were 150 Global Express aircraft in US-registered service, operated by 115 operators, and a total of 5,425 Canadian-made aircraft of various types were in US-registered service, including narrowbodies, regional jets and helicopters.
Bombardier operates several service centers in the United States, recently announcing such a facility for Fort Wayne, Ind., and has operations in Wichita, Kan., where it is growing its defense business. It is estimated that Bombardier has 2,500 to 3,000 employees in the U.S.
The FAA in December certified Bombardier’s Global 8000 business jet, the world’s fastest civilian plane since Concorde, with a top speed of Mach 0.95, or about 729 mph (1,173 kph). It was initially certified by Transport Canada on November 5.
It was not clear which aircraft would fall under Trump’s increased tariffs other than Bombardier’s global large-cabin jets, which also include the Airbus A220 commercial jet.
The A220 was developed by Bombardier Inc. at a cost of over US$6 billion, with the Government of Quebec investing in the program. Bombardier reached a deal with Airbus in 2018, giving it control of production in exchange for a fee.
The aircraft are built in Mirabel, Ky., and Mobile, Ala.
Gulf Stream
In his post, Trump said Canada has “wrongfully, illegally and persistently refused to certify the Gulfstream 500, 600, 700 and 800 jets, among the greatest, most technologically advanced airplanes ever built.”
Putting aside Trump’s sharp language, it is true that Transport Canada has not yet fully certified those models from Gulfstream, a subsidiary of General Dynamics in Reston, VA.
The following are the dates that General Dynamics notes that FAA certifications for the respective models occurred:
- Gufflestream G500: July 20, 2018.
- Gulfstream G600: August 1, 2019.
- Gulfstream G700: March 29, 2024.
- Gulfstream G800: April 16, 2025.
Meanwhile, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency certified the Gulfstream G800 shortly after FAA approval.
Gradek told CBC News that the Canadian certification process is “world-class” and “exemplary”.
