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WICHITA, Kan. The Learjet, which has become synonymous with the lifestyles of rich and famous, is fading in aviation history.
Canada’s Bombardier announced on Thursday that it would halt production of the Learjet later this year to focus on more lucrative aircraft.
This means the elimination of 1,600 jobs in Canada and the United States, another blow to aircraft manufacturing, which has dried up in the pandemic.
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The iconic aircraft was one of the first private luxury aircraft. William Lear based his design in part on military aircraft. The first Learjet flew in 1963, and since then more than 3,000 have been built.
“It was smooth and had a pedigree of a fighter jet,” said Richard Aboulafia, an aviation analyst at Teal Group. ‘For its time, it symbolizes personal executive transportation. On top of that, Carly Simon put it in a fantastic song – which captured its place in popular culture. ‘
In addition to being a line in Simon’s 1971 hit “You’re So Vain,” the plane has appeared elsewhere in pop culture, including the hit TV show “Mad Men.” Frank Sinatra had Elvis Presley borrow his Learjet to date Priscilla Beaulieu in 1967.
In recent years, the production of the aircraft has decreased to about one per month. Thursday’s decision was predicted in 2015, when Bombardier pulled the plug on a brand new model, the Learjet 85, with weak demand. Analysts can see the end of the line.
“The only thing the pandemic did was to accelerate a sad end,” Aboulafia said.
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Bombardier said it would support the Learjet fleet, and existing aircraft would fly for many years to come.
Most of the expected job losses for Bombardier in Montreal will occur in Canada, with about 700 in Quebec and 100 in Ontario. The company said about 250 jobs will be eliminated in Wichita this year and next year, with another 100 job losses spread across the rest of the US.
CEO Eric Martel said in a statement that reducing jobs is always difficult, “but this reduction is absolutely essential for us to rebuild our company as we go through the pandemic.”
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Air travel declined during the COVID-19 outbreak, which caused sharp demand for new aircraft to drop sharply.
Bombardier said stopping production of the Learjet later this year would allow the company to focus on its more profitable Challenger and Global aircraft and accelerate the expansion of its service business.
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Koenig reported from Dallas.