(Adds quotes)
By Tim Hepher
DUBLIN, June 1 (Reuters) - Canada's Bombardier Inc BBDb.TO
believes it has turned the corner with its troubled CSeries jet
programme and is confident of posting further wins on top of a
recent major order from Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) DAL.N , its chief
executive said.
Interviewed at a meeting of global airlines in Dublin, Alain
Bellemare declined to say when the Canadian company might come
up with another sale such as Delta's pivotal order for 75 jets,
but said he was confident it would be embraced by all types of
airlines, including low-cost carriers.
"We are confident that we will continue to see orders from
the likes of Delta in the future," Bellemare said.
"I think going forward we will see a variety of different
business models adopt this aircraft."
Bellemare said talks over a $1 billion cash injection from
the Canadian government were moving forward and he hoped for a
deal soon.
"They are still ongoing and progressing. These are complex
negotiations and we are working towards a win-win solution," he
said, adding, "we are not there yet".
Asked how far it was willing to go in accepting conditions
such as constraints on its choice of suppliers, Bellemare said
Bombardier would need to remain free to run its business.
"There has got to be the right solution for them and for the
business. We are a global company and we work in a very complex
environment all around the world, so we have to maintain
operational flexibility. It is very critical."
He rebuffed suggestions that a federal aid package, combined
with a $1 billion planned investment by Quebec in the CSeries,
would lead to the plane programme being nationalised.
"The financial structure around the aircraft doesn't change
the fact that this product is a Bombardier product," he said.
Bellemare was appointed CEO just over a year ago at a time
when the CSeries was running short of cash amid weak sales.
"There was a rough patch and it was a little bit difficult
in 2015, but Bombardier is a solid company with good financial
resources today, and we are here to stay."
Asked whether Bombardier would consider expanding its two
110- to 130-seat CSeries models to compete with larger Airbus
and Boeing (NYSE:BA) jets, the head of its commercial airplanes unit, Fred
Cromer, said, "At this point it is all on the CS100 and CS300."
(Writing by Tim Hepher, Allison Lampert; Editing by G Crosse
and Chris Reese)