Bombardier bills marquee jet as US-made in Boeing trade fight

Bombardier, a crown jewel of Canadian manufacturing, is billing itself as a major US employer in a bitter trade fight with Boeing that has profits, diplomatic ties and the future of a fledgling aircraft on the line. The maker of the narrow-body jet at the heart of the dispute has assembled an influential group of US politicians, vendors and customers to back its side in a case brought by Boeing, which reaches a critical hearing next week in Washington. Bombardier says more than half its all-new C Series aircraft is made in US factories even though final assembly takes place near Montreal. The US International Trade Commission is slated to hear arguments Dec 18 on whether American industry was harmed by Bombardier’s sale of its jet to Delta Air Lines at what Boeing calls an unfairly low price -- enabled in part by subsidies in Canada. <br/>