Harkening to a new unprecedented era of cooperation between the two companies, Bombardier and Signature Aviation have signed a landmark memorandum of understanding that will cover several areas and provide benefits to their respective customer bases.

Signature has agreed to provide dedicated concierge service at the airframer’s service centers in the U.S. and Europe, including Tucson, Arizona; Hartford, Connecticut; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Dallas; and Wichita, as well as at the UK’s London-Biggin Hill. Each of the facilities will have Signature staff permanently assigned. “Initially it’s going to be meet-and-greet services,” said Tony Lefebvre, the FBO chain’s interim CEO, adding it will emulate the welcome program in place at all the company’s locations. “It’s being the front-end customer touchpoint for Bombardier.”

That will include taking care of the customer’s needs from aircraft induction to the maintenance center to getting them on another aircraft, or making transport and lodging arrangements for them in the area. “We’re really there to facilitate whatever the customer needs to be able to complete the journey or get them on the way to where they need to be.”

Secondly, Bombardier will now station mobile response teams (MRT), including vehicles, technicians, and spare parts at various Signature FBOs across the U.S. and in Europe. As it expanded its service footprint, the OEM had previously needed to obtain its own airport access for its MRTs. “What we are looking to do with this partnership is really attach these vehicles to Signature locations,” Jean-Christophe Gallagher, Bombardier’s executive v-p of services, support, and corporate strategy, told AIN.

“They already have access to the airport, they already have hangars, space to put parts, we are really now going to be able to leverage the Signature infrastructure to continue that rapid expansion,” he added. For Bombardier operators that means transiting through Signature FBOs will provide access to the airframer’s own maintenance capabilities.

Lefebvre noted that as Bombardier aircraft arrive needing service, “it’s going to allow us to have a much quicker response time because we’re connected to the Bombardier team,” he explained. “Today it could take multiple phone calls. It's the logistics questions: can the mobile service unit go onto the ramp?” he said, adding that the new agreement will streamline that process. “I think it's bringing a lot more connectivity to the two companies that will ultimately result in a better customer experience.”

Lastly, Signature, currently the world’s largest FBO buyer of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), will become the exclusive provider of the renewable fuel at Bombardier’s production and service facilities around the world as supply becomes available. The Signature Renew product, a blend of SAF and conventional jet-A, provides a 25 percent lifecycle carbon emissions savings over standard jet fuel, and as the percentage of the SAF component (presently 35 percent volume) increases, so too will those emissions benefits.

“Our intention is to make SAF more available to more customers in the network and certainly this relationship says this is a group of customers we would love to continue to take SAF,” Lefebvre told AIN. “I think our relationship with Bombardier is one that we want to continue to help deliver that opportunity for the Bombardier customers to continue to use or transition to SAF.”

The companies expect this to be just the start of their long-term collaboration efforts as more synergistic opportunities present themselves. “We’re bringing together two companies that are true leaders in the industry when it comes to customer satisfaction,” said Gallagher. “We’re bringing them together by leveraging each other’s strengths.”