Bombardier and Friday the thirteenth
"Stand and deliver" has taken on a new meaning in our great new world of multi-national corporations.
Readers may remember the above assertion appearing in the March 2004 issue of this e-zine in an article dealing with Québec-based Bombardier Aerospace and its threat to the Government of Canada that it must ante up taxpayers' dollars to develop and assemble a new class of aircraft in the Montreal area.
Again quoting from the 2004 article:
Bombardier, the Canadian aircraft manufacturer, bluntly told the Canadian government that unless it provided more financial support it will assemble a new type of aircraft in its plant in Belfast.
"I'm not threatening. I'm telling the truth", said Bombardier's chief executive, Paul Tellier, in Montreal, on Tuesday, February 17.
Leaving aside the claimed distinction between a threat and a truth, the simple fact remains that on Friday May 13, certainly not an unlucky date for Bombardier, Jean Lapierre, the federal Minister of Transport, and colleague, Stephane Dion, announced that Bombardier would receive $350 million from federal coffers, this on top of $110 from Québec provincial coffers.
And, on the very same day, Bombardier announced the British government would contribute about $420 million toward construction.
In actual fact the British government announced that it would offer £180 million to Bombardier to help the company build bits and pieces of the new aircraft, including the wing, engine nacelles and composite tail of the new family of 110 - 130 seat aircraft, at its plant in Belfast.
Readers may care to refresh their memories by re-reading the article "Stand and deliver! " at http://www.vindicator.ca/vindicator/mar_2004_can_3.asp
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