Bombardier denounced President Trump’s ban threat, citing its U.S.-made parts and deep ties to U.S. suppliers and employees.
Bombardier has pushed back against President Donald Trump’s threat to block sales of its planes unless it starts building them in the United States, saying it has already started.
In a statement provided to Al Jazeera on Tuesday, the Quebec-based aircraft manufacturer said it employs thousands of workers across the United States.
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“Bombardier aircraft are built with American-made components, including engines, avionics and many critical systems provided by great American companies,” Bombardier Aircraft said in a statement.
Appearing on Truth Social on Monday, President Trump criticized Canadian companies for making 50% of their revenue in the United States and making a living on “American buyers, American companies, American airports, American services.”
“Bombardier is no longer selling in the US! Their product is not good enough!” Trump wrote. “If they want our market, they have to build here and stop treating America like a ‘piggy bank.'”
Bombardier, which employs 3,500 people in the United States, noted that it manufactures its products domestically, including wings made in Texas and flight control parts made in California.
The company also works with suppliers in 47 states, is opening a new service center in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and has existing service centers in Arizona, Texas, Kansas, Florida and Connecticut, it said, noting it spends $2.5 billion annually on suppliers.
“Bombardier values our great partnership with American companies and American employees. Our plan is to continue to invest in our employees, customers and the communities in which we operate across the United States,” the company said.
Intensifying trade tensions
Republican Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas, home of Bombardier’s U.S. headquarters, on Monday denied the president’s comments.
“Bombardier’s presence in Wichita supports a local workforce of more than 1,000 employees who contribute their talent and expertise to our nation’s defense and aerospace capabilities,” Moran told X.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) also pushed back against the comments, saying it opposes any attempt to block sales in the United States.
The remarks came amid escalating trade tensions between the United States and Canada. Canada’s retaliatory tariffs went into effect early Tuesday, affecting hundreds of U.S. products worth $20 billion, after the White House introduced 50% tariffs on Canadian goods.
On Wall Street, Bombardier shares fell more than 6.5% in midday trading. Meanwhile, rival stocks rose, with Boeing up 0.3% and Airbus up 1%.
This is not the first time Trump has been at loggerheads with the Montreal-area-based aircraft manufacturer. President Trump in January accused the company of keeping Gulfstream business jets out of the Canadian market by delaying certification of the planes.
During President Trump’s first term, Boeing accused Bombardier of using government subsidies to sell passenger planes at artificially low prices in the United States. The Commerce Department calculated the tariffs on the aircraft to be nearly 300 percent. However, the tariffs did not go into effect after the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled that Bombardier aircraft did not harm the U.S. aircraft sector.
Several U.S. airlines also operate Bombardier aircraft through regional airline partners such as Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, American Airlines and Alaska Airlines, and their fleets also include aircraft operated by carriers such as Endeavor Air Lines and SkyWest.
The White House did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment.
