Bombardier begins assembly of CSeries first flight test vehicle

Static testing of fuselage and wing. Courtesy, Bombardier

Bombardier has begun assembly of the CSeries aircraft’s first flight test vehicle (FTV1) at its Mirabel, Québec facility (ATW Daily News, Sept. 28).

According to a Bombardier statement, the cockpit and all fuselage sections have arrived and the
first wings for the all-new CSeries aircraft are now being mated to the test airframe that will be used during the Complete Airframe Static Test (CAST).

Testing is progressing steadily of the avionics, electrical, flight control, fly-by-wire, hydraulic, landing gear and wiring systems, as well as virtual flights, on “Aircraft 0”—the on-the-ground Integrated Systems Test and Certification Rig for the CSeries aircraft, Bombardier said.

Bombardier VP and GM Rob Dewar said the CAST, FTV1 and Aircraft 0 are all “key elements in the testing and development of the CSeries aircraft … To date, tests have shown no unexpected results and all is going as planned.”

The CS100 is due to enter service by the end of 2013, followed by the larger CS300 one year later (ATW Daily News, April 26).