Here is the latest data from each of the three flight test programs through March.
The A350 program continues apace.  Though the rate of flight hour accumulation seems to have slowed. MSN001 is less busy than it once was. MSN002 is busy again, while MSN003 also seems to have tailed off in activity.
The 787-9 flight test program accelerated again. All three test vehicles were busy last month and a sharp rise in total hours reflects this.
The start of a hockey stick? It is Canada after all. Bombardier’s fleet was busy last month building hours. It seems the move to Wichita for test flights helped accelerate the program. But they need to hustle.
When seeing the three programs in a timeline, we can see the Airbus and Boeing programs running well in terms of flight hour accumulation. Bombardier’s program looks slow, even though March was far better than previous months.
In summary, we continue to expect to see an early EIS on the A350; late summer looks within reach. Boeing’s program, being a derivative, is expected to be running well. The 787-9 EIS looks on schedule based on the data. The CSeries program saw better numbers for March, but the program needs a boost of more test vehicles and faster flight hour accumulation. Bombardier sounded confident at ISTAT that it will meet its revised schedule.
You state the A350 MSN1 is accumulating hours less quickly. this is because it was down for 6 weeks (February through into March) to switch from Li-Ion batteries to NiCad batteries for certification.
Many of us already had an intuitive grasp of this, but to see it so well illustrated in graphical form really brings home the harsh reality that the CSeries flight test programme is indeed struggling.
“Though the rate of flight hour accumulation seems to have slowed.”
On the contrary, the A350 program logged 280 hours in March, the highest ever.
See http://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AlVgPnmHLOovdFdzbVlyQzhYNDhCb1VFN1RkYXkwV3c&gid=6
If I didn’t know better I would think the CSeries is cursed.
The CSeries is the first mainliner aircraft for Bombardier. It’s an all-new design featuring a lot of new technology. The slow growth of flight hours is not only related to the aircraft itself, but also to Bombardier’s whole aerospace division.
In a way, the CSeries is Bombardier’s training camp tryout for the Major Leagues.
According to aero.de the distribution is as follows for end of March:
MSN0001: 682 h on 149 flights
MSN0002: 70+ h
MSN0003: 534 h on 111 flights
MSN0004: 70+ h
Sum: 1356+ h
http://www.aero.de/news-19359/Ein-Besuch-bei-den-Flugtestern-von-Airbus.html
I think the CSeries is the major leagues. Like any new team, they are getting smacked around.
I think they will recover and I think the C will be a major success. The operators who will fly that segment ain’t the big international carriers and won’t commit until they know they will get a product that works, they live and die on the success of their ops and decisions. The big boys can make one mistake after another and go on, not the short and mid range operators.