Bombardier Won’t Contest Ottawa’s Sole-Source Deal on New Boeing Military Planes

Bombardier Inc. will not contest the federal government’s decision to replace the military’s aging patrol planes with aircraft from U.S. rival Boeing Co., the Quebec jet maker says. The government announced last month it would buy at least 14 Boeing surveillance planes from the United States, in a sole-source deal to phaseout Canada’s half-century-old fleet of CP-140 Auroras—closing the door on Bombardier. Defence Minister Bill Blair said on Nov. 30 that Boeing’s P-8A Poseidon aircraft, which features submarine-hunting technology and anti-ship missiles, meets all the needs of the Air Force. It presents “the only choice” available, he said, given Bombardier’s proposed alternative is not slated to roll off the line until the early 2030s....