Avalon 2025: Bombardier announces two special mission aircraft for Australia
The Bombardier Challenger 650 is a reconfigurable special mission platform. This rendering appears to show the aircraft in its maritime patrol configuration. (Bombardier Defense)
Bombardier Defense has announced that it is providing an Australian-based leasing firm with two Challenger 650 special mission aircraft for operations in Australia.
In a statement on 25 March, Bombardier Defense said that the procurer is Principle Finance, an Australian-based âprovider of customised operating lease for aircraftâ. A signing ceremony, which confirmed the purchase, was held that same day during the Avalon 2025 international airshow.
Principle Finance âhas acquired two ⊠Challenger 650 aircraft destined for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions in Australia. The delivery of both aircraft is planned for 2026â, Bombardier said.
On its website, Principle Finance describes itself as âoffering comprehensive finance structures designed to meet the unique needs of operators across special mission sectors of the aerospace industryâ. The company states that this includes mission-specific aircraft modifications and specialised mission equipment.
Janes has reached out to Bombardier and Principle Finance for additional information.
According to Bombardier, the Challenger 650 aircraft have âshort-field performanceâ and are an âideal choice for ISR missionsâ by having the capabilities to cover âexpansive territories and offering performance comparable to large maritime patrol aircraft at fractions of their purchase and operating costsâ.
It is unclear which configuration the two aircraft will be delivered in. In a photograph of the contract signing published by Bombardier, a model of the Challenger 650 was displayed in maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) configuration. Janes assesses that the model contained external features and antennas associated with synthetic aperture radar-ground moving target indicator (SAR-GMTI) systems, an electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) pod, communication intelligence (COMINT), and a datalink system.
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