Qantas Takes the Q400	January 2005

The familiar Qantas Airways "flying kangaroo" will be decorating the tail of the Bombardier high-speed Q400 turboprop airliner beginning in the first quarter of 2006. The premier Australian airline recently placed a firm order for seven Bombardier Q400 aircraft and took options and purchase rights on an additional 10 on behalf of its QantasLink regional airline.

"This investment marks a new era in regional air travel, with the Bombardier Q400 featuring jet-like speed and allowing QantasLink to grow capacity efficiently on key routes while maintaining frequency," said Narendra Kumar, Executive General Manager, Regional Airlines at Qantas Airways. "Passenger acceptance of our current fleet of Bombardier Q Series has also been high - especially with the excellent Noise and Vibration Suppression (NVS) system in our newer Q200 and Q300 aircraft - so the Q400 was the obvious choice for the larger aircraft."

The 360-knot cruise speed of the Bombardier Q400, said Mr. Kumar, will enable QantasLink to reduce flight times and potentially operate additional frequencies on some sectors.

Steven Ridolfi, President, Bombardier Regional Aircraft, welcomed Qantas as the 12^th customer for the Q400. "We are confident that the Bombardier Q400 will have a very positive impact on QantasLink's operations. The jet speed and comfort will benefit passengers, and its very low exhaust and noise emissions will make it a very environmentally friendly aircraft," he said.

The Qantas Airways contract increased firm orders for the Bombardier Q400 to 121 aircraft, with 88 in service with 10 operators in North America, Europe and the Asia/Pacific region.