Bombardier has signed a smart parts maintenance agreement with Jazz Aviation to cover the Canadian regional carrier's 15 Bombardier Q400 nextgen aircraft.

The nine-year contract will help the airline manage its operational and parts maintenance costs. It ends in 2020.

"The smart parts programme gives us a leg up by allowing us to introduce a new aircraft type to our fleet without the typical capital outlay for spare parts inventory acquisition and warehousing," says Richard Steer, vice president of maintenance and engineering at Jazz, at the Farnborough air show today.

Jazz operates the aircraft under a capacity purchase agreement for Air Canada. It has options for 15 additional Q400s.

Source: Air Transport Intelligence news