Bombardier today celebrated the 1,000th delivery of its super-midsize business jet line portfolio with the handing over of a Challenger 3500 to JM Family Enterprises. More than 700 of the company’s employees and other invitees gathered at Bombardier’s Challenger delivery center in Montreal for the ceremonial delivery.

The milestone comes a little more than 20 years after the original member of the Challenger 3500 family—the Challenger 300—entered service with fractional ownership provider Flexjet in January 2024. Initially named the Continental, the Challenger 300 forged a new path for Bombardier in the aircraft segment, becoming the most-delivered super-midsize aircraft. Sporting a pair of 6,826-pound-thrust Honeywell HTF7000 turbofans, the Challenger 300 could fly 3,100 nm.

Some 457 of the Honeywell HTF7000-powered Challenger 300s were handed over before Bombardier transitioned to the follow-on 350 model a decade later, with the first delivered this time to NetJets in June 2014. This model had a modernized interior, updated 7,323-pound-thrust HTF7350 engines, and a strengthened wing with canted winglets. This increased the payload by 900 pounds and enabled the aircraft to fly 3,200 nm. By 2020, the second member of the family had reached 350 deliveries. According to AIN affiliate AircraftPost, 423 Challenger 350s were delivered.

The newest follow-on, the 3500, entered service in September 2022 and by this past October had become the fastest super-midsize aircraft to reach 100 deliveries and is now around the 120-aircraft mark, AircraftPost finds. This model adopted the nomenclature of the Global family and borrowed some interior elements of the flagship 7500, such as Nuage seats. It also introduced voice-activated cabin management controls and came equipped with a standard autothrottle system.

“Reaching the delivery of our 1,000th super-midsize aircraft marks a defining moment for Bombardier,” said Bombardier president and CEO Éric Martel. “This milestone is a testament to the dedication and exceptional talent of our employees, as well as the trust and loyalty of our customers around the world. It holds even greater significance as we are celebrating with a client who shares our family values, entrepreneurial spirit, and commitment to the community.”