Bombardier Unveils Plans for Australian Service Center

Bombardier Aviation is continuing to build out its global service network with plans to develop a 50,000-sq-ft service center at Essendon Fields Airport in Melbourne, Australia, the Canadian airframer announced today. With construction of the new facility set to begin this year and become operational in 2022, the center will employ 50 people—including 40 technicians—and have a 4,000-sq-ft parts depot.

It will support Learjet, Challenger, and Global aircraft with scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, modifications, avionics installations, and AOG services. Bombardier accounts for more than half of the 168 business jets in the Australian fleet.

The new center also complements Bombardier’s maintenance capacity in the Asia-Pacific region that includes its Singapore service center, which is expanding by 330,000 sq ft.

“We are thrilled with the addition of the new Melbourne service center, which further builds on Bombardier’s commitment to Australia and the Asia-Pacific region,” said Jean-Christophe Gallagher, Bombardier Aviation executive v-p of services, support, and corporate strategy. “By adding more specialized know-how and greater capacity to support more aircraft in this key location, we are providing our customers even more reasons to bring their jets home.”

Leading the Melbourne center will be Corey Trudgen, a former Royal Australian Navy maintenance technician who most recently was general manager of Bombardier’s London Biggin Hill service center, which is being replaced by a larger, 250,000-sq-ft facility.