(Adds context, comments on lack of orders)
By Allison Martell
TORONTO, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Canada's Bombardier Inc
BBDb.TO said on Thursday that its new CSeries narrow-body,
medium-range commercial jet is 85 percent through the
certification process, with just over 2,400 test hours completed
on the aircraft.
Bombardier, which aims to certify its $5.4 billion jet by
the end of 2015 and deliver it in the first half of 2016 to
Lufthansa-owned LHAG.DE launch customer Swiss, said it was
comfortable with its order book.
"I'm feeling pretty good, to be honest," said CSeries Vice
President Rob Dewar at an event in Toronto, where the
Montreal-based plane and train maker displayed one of its
CSeries test planes for workers at its Downsview plant.
The Montreal-based manufacturer, which has struggled to find
buyers for its much-delayed plane, has 243 firm orders. But it
has not announced new firm order since September 2014.
Commercial Aircraft President Fred Cromer said he was still
comfortable with Bombardier achieving its goal of 300 firm
orders by the aircraft's entry into service and said "it's
natural with the introduction of a new plane for some customers
to take a bit of a wait-and-see approach."
Bombardier also said that tests show the CSeries is the
quietest jet in its class.
(With additional reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal and
Susan Taylor in Toronto; Editing by Franklin Paul and Dan
Grebler)