Illegal Canadian Subsidies Propped up Bombardier C Series Program: Boeing

Boeing justified its case against Bombardier at the International Trade Commission (ITC) hearing on Monday by claiming that Bombardier’s ‘illegal’ business practices with its C Series aircraft harmed United States domestic industry.

“Boeing brought this case seeking enforcement of US trade law, which mirrors the widely-accepted rules of international trade adopted by most WTO member nations, including Canada. The resulting Department of Commerce and ITC investigations are part of a longstanding, transparent, and rigorous fact-based process for resolving precisely these sorts of commercial trade disputes,” a Boeing statement said.

Today’s hearing was simply the next step in that process, as the ITC considered extensive evidence that underscored the harm Bombardier’s unlawful actions have caused US industry.

“These investigations have already established beyond question that Bombardier has taken billions of dollars in illegal government subsidies to prop up its C Series program. The C Series would not even exist at this point but for those subsidies.”

The investigations have also left no doubt Bombardier used these government funds to dump aircraft into the US market at absurdly low prices, millions below their cost of production and millions below the price of the same aircraft in Canada. Bombardier’s conduct is flatly inconsistent with US trade law, and it has caused severe harm to Boeing, its employees, and its suppliers, the statement said.

“Bombardier can sell their aircraft anywhere in the world, so long as they follow the law and comply with the trade rules we have all agreed to,” the statement added.