FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Bombardier Inc. said Thursday that the parent of regional airline American Eagle ordered 22 jets with a value of $779 million.
Eagle, the regional sister carrier of American Airlines, held options on the planes and converted them to firm orders, said Bombardier said, which is based in Canada.
In a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Eagle parent AMR Corp. said it reached an agreement with Canada's export agency and another party, which it did not name, to provide financing for the full cost of the order.
AMR said Eagle expects to receive two planes per month beginning next June and running through April 2011. Eagle has 270 planes, mostly Brazilian-made Embraers, according to its Web site.
Bombardier said despite the Eagle order, projected sales were too weak to maintain current production. The company announced cuts in production last month.
The sale to Eagle covers CRJ700 regional jets, which are smaller planes used to ferry passengers to and from the big hub airports.
Bombardier announced the order as it released financial results for the quarter ended Oct. 31. It said the order was placed after the quarter ended.
Shares of AMR Corp., which is based in Fort Worth, rose 6 cents to $6.85 in afternoon trading.
