International Airlines Group (IAG), owner of British Airways and Iberia, would consider adding Bombardier Inc’s C-Series jet to its fleet in future, its Chief Executive Willie Walsh, said on Friday.Walsh said although C-Series was not currently on his shopping list, he would continue to look at it as an option because of his confidence in the aircraft boosted by a recent order.
Bombardier secured a major order for its new C-Series on Thursday when Delta Airlines ordered 75 jets.
The manufacturer said the deal was a turning point in the attempt to break into the fleets of top airlines.
“It’s not part of our plans at this stage but having said that there’s plenty of scope in our future plans to look at the C-Series as a potential aircraft within the IAG fleet,” Wash told reporters on a call.
The C-Series serves the niche market for 100-seat planes spurned by larger rivals Boeing and Airbus, where Bombardier faces competition from Brazil’s Embraer.
The Delta order would make a difference to the jet’s popularity, Walsh said.
“It will give confidence to others to look at the aircraft… people wanted to see some significant hard orders before they wanted to commit to it,” he said.
Another of IAG’s airlines, Vueling, had in the past carried out a detailed evaluation of the C-Series but decided against it, Walsh said.
