Bombardier CRJ100 / CRJ200
The 50-seat original that turned the regional jet into an industry · First flight 1991 · In service 1992
Canadair launched the Regional Jet in early 1989, stretching its Challenger business jet into a 50-seat airliner. The first of three development aircraft flew from Montréal on 10 May 1991, and launch customer Lufthansa CityLine received its first CRJ100 in October 1992. SkyWest, which had ordered ten before the programme was even launched, was the first US customer.
The CRJ200 followed with uprated CF34-3B1 engines that improved fuel burn, cruise speed and cruise altitude; SkyWest flew its first revenue service on 15 February 1994. The CRJ440 was a CRJ200 certified for 44 seats to suit US scope clauses, and the CRJ200PF a parcel freighter conversion developed with Cascade Aerospace.
Comair, Lufthansa CityLine, Brit Air, Delta Connection carriers and SkyWest made it the backbone of regional flying, and Slovenia's Adria Airways flew CRJ200s across Europe. Bombardier closed the line in 2006 after 1,021 aircraft: 226 CRJ100s, 709 CRJ200s and 86 CRJ440s.
