Facing difficult challenges related to its CSeries regional airliner, Bombardier is turning to an outsider to head the company after CEO Pierre Beaudoin stepped down.
Bombardier announced that it has hired Alain Bellemare, a former top executive at United Technologies, to head the Canadian company. Beaudoin’s title has been changed to Executive Chairman. His father, Laurent Beaudoin, who led Bombardier for more than 30 years before becoming chairman, will retire.
Bombardier also revealed plans to raise more capital as the company announced the CSeries will now cost $5.4 billion to develop — up $1 billion from a year ago. Bombardier was recently forced to shelve its Learjet 85 jet program to focus resources on the troubled CSeries.
Bellemare becomes only the second outsider to run the family-controlled company since it began operating in 1942 as a snowmobile maker.
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