Republic Airways to buy Bombardier jets that compete with Boeing 737

Republic Airways, which owns Midwest and Frontier regional airlines, said Thursday it has agreed to buy 40 new Bombardier CS300 jets, with options for an additional 40 aircraft.

The order is a big boost for the new Bombardier CSeries, which comes in two aircraft sizes — roughly 110 seats and 130 seats — and will compete directly against Boeing's smaller 737s as well as Airbus' A320 family of jets. Bombardier's shares jumped more than 7 percent on the news.

The CSeries's plastic carbon-fiber composite wings will be built in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and its advanced aluminum alloy fuselage will be manufactured in China. Final assembly is in Montreal.

The engines are Pratt &Whitney geared turbofans, which promise a 20 percent improvement in fuel burn over the current engines on 737s and A320s.

The first CSeries jet is set to enter service in 2013, a schedule that threatens to take market share from Boeing and Airbus, who will probably not replace their single-aisle jets until years later.

Because of that threat, both Boeing and Airbus are expected this year to announce interim updates to the 737 and A320 families with new-generation engines. Airbus will likely go for the same Pratt & Whitney engine as the CSeries uses.

Republic said it will configure its aircraft with seating for 138 passengers, with delivery beginning in the second quarter of 2015.

The CSeries now has 90 firm orders, with 30 ordered by Germany's Lufthansa and 20 by Lease Corporation International, headquartered in Ireland. The program has also booked options for an additional 90 CSeries aircraft orders.

Dominic Gates: 206-464-2963 or dgates@seattletimes.com