• March 28, 2024

Bombardier jet assembly plant cleared for landing at Pearson

A new chapter in the long history of aircraft manufacturing in Malton is about to be written after Bombardier’s announcement that it has signed a long-term lease to build its newest generation of Global business jets in Mississauga.

“This cutting edge facility will have the capacity to build up to 100 aircraft a year and will give us the opportunity to further streamline and optimize our business aircraft operations, while securing thousands of high-tech, high-paying jobs in the GTA for years to come,” Bombardier spokesperson Simon Letendre said.

The Montreal-based international transportation giant is selling its Downsview property, where 3,500 employees produce Global jets. It will remain at Downsview for three years, with two optional one-year extensions.

“The move to Pearson would take place during this time frame,” Letendre said.

Bombardier has signed a letter of agreement with the Greater Toronto Airports Authority for a long-term lease of 38 acres. Further details will be announced later.

The GTAA  is “very pleased” that Bombardier sought the lease. There are no other manufacturing facilities currently on Toronto Pearson lands.

“The GTAA is doing exactly what their mission is, to accommodate a world-class transportation hub for the Toronto area,” commented David Wojcik of Mississauga’s Board of Trade.

“This is one of those wonderful win-win situations where a great Canadian brand is able to connect with a global transportation hub.”

The fact that the GTAA will host a manufacturing plant with airside access is ”a game changer. There has not been new air-side access at Pearson for quite some time,” Wojcik noted.

“This is good news,” echoed Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “Not only will this investment bring new jobs, it will boost economic growth and further cement Mississauga’s position as the leading aerospace cluster in Canada.”

Malton Coun. Carolyn Parrish called the news “positive” saying, “it’s a better way of bringing in jobs than the casino” at nearby Woodbine race course.

But it also “accentuates all the city’s problems” with the GTAA, she said.

The new plant won’t need rezoning or a building permit because it’s on Crown land.

The city and GTAA have been at loggerheads almost since the authority was formed about the approval process for airport development, servicing costs and taxes.

They’re currently disputing $5 million in stormwater drainage levies.

The City is also boycotting the planning process for the multi-billion dollar regional transit terminal until the GTAA negotiates a long-sought Memorandum of Agreement. That’s never been finalized. An initial meeting with the GTAA has been held, council was told May 9. Talks have been “very positive” Corporate Services Commissioner Gary Kent said.

Bombardier’s plant will create more deliveries, road congestion and pollution, Parrish said.

Although the plant’s location is unknown, the Ward 5 councillor believes it could mean the return of aircraft manufacturing to the southwest corner of the Derry and Airport roads, where the former A.V. Roe plant once stood.

When Boeing shut down operations there in 2005, the plant was demolished and sold to the GTAA.

Ward 7 Coun. Dave Cook, a local author who’s written frequently on airport history, is “delighted to see the rich tradition of aircraft manufacturing in Malton continue.”