Walkaround

Bombardier

CRJ family

CRJ200, CRJ550, CRJ700, CRJ900

out of production, in service CF34-3B1, CF34-8C5 4 min read · updated 21 September 2026 · checked 21 September 2026

At a glance

Type card

VariantsCRJ200, CRJ550, CRJ700, CRJ900
EnginesGE CF34-3B1 on the CRJ200, CF34-8C5 on the CRJ700 and CRJ900
Typical seating50 on the CRJ200, 50 on the CRJ550, 70 on the CRJ700, 76 to 90 on the CRJ900
StatusOut of production, in service
Type certificate holderMHI RJ Aviation, since 1 June 2020
SupportMHI RJ, focused entirely on the in service fleet

Program and production

Bombardier no longer has anything to do with this aircraft. The CRJ programme was sold to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and the deal closed on 1 June 2020. MHI RJ Aviation holds the type certificate and, with no production line, is focused entirely on supporting the existing fleet.

That fleet is larger than most people assume. Aviation Week Fleet Discovery listed about 1,300 CRJs globally in April 2026, roughly a third of which were built as CRJ200s. In the United States, passenger airlines still operate around 380 50 seat jets in total, of which about 90 are CRJ200s and about 80 are CRJ550s.

The CRJ550 is worth understanding because it is not a factory build. It is a CRJ700 airframe reconfigured to 50 seats with a premium heavy cabin, created specifically to fit inside US scope clause limits while offering a product airlines could sell. It exists because of a contractual constraint rather than an engineering one.

In plain terms

A scope clause caps what regional partners may fly for a major US airline, currently at 76 seats. The CRJ550 takes a 70 seat aircraft and fits 50 seats into it, with more space per passenger. It costs more per seat to operate, but it lets an airline serve a route that the seat cap would otherwise make awkward.

How long the fleet lasts is genuinely contested. ATR has forecast that US carriers will retire most 50 seat jets within a decade. MHI RJ disputes that directly, arguing the aircraft will remain essential until 2040 because no comparable replacement exists. SkyWest's chief executive Chip Childs has said the airline plans to continue using the CRJ fleet well into the next decade.

The honest position is that MHI RJ and SkyWest are probably right for the wrong reason. The aircraft is not efficient, but nothing is being built to replace it, and that absence is what keeps it flying.

The CRJ450 is the latest evidence of that logic. United is having SkyWest convert CRJ200 airframes into a 41 seat configuration, with seven first class seats, 16 Economy Plus and 18 standard economy, similar in spirit to the CRJ550 conversion. The first CRJ450 is due to enter service from United's Chicago O'Hare and Denver hubs this autumn, with more than 50 planned by 2028 alongside the nearly 120 CRJ550s already flying. It is a further sign that scope clause economics, not airframe age, is what decides whether a 50 seat jet keeps working.

Technical and maintenance

No new fleet wide Airworthiness Directive of major significance was issued against the type in this period.

The maintenance picture is defined by two things: airframe age and the absence of a production line.

On the line

Supporting an out of production type means parts obsolescence becomes a scheduled activity rather than a surprise. With MHI RJ focused solely on aftermarket support and no new airframes feeding the supply chain, used serviceable material and repair capability carry more of the load than they would on an in production fleet. Build lead time assumptions around that, and invest in repair approvals for components where new supply is thinning. On high cycle CRJ200s in particular, the short sector duty cycle means cycle driven inspections come round faster than flight hours alone would suggest.

The CF34-3B1 and CF34-8C5 are mature engines with long service records and no current systemic issue. That stability is a meaningful advantage compared with the GTF powered regional aircraft that were supposed to replace these types.

Records quality is a recurring practical problem on airframes that have moved between regional operators several times under different capacity purchase agreements.

Orders and operators

There is no order book and there will not be one. The type certificate holder does not build aircraft.

SkyWest is the dominant CRJ operator in North America, flying CRJ200, CRJ550, CRJ700 and CRJ900 aircraft on behalf of the major carriers. Endeavor Air operates a substantial CRJ900 fleet for Delta. PSA and Air Wisconsin have historically operated significant CRJ fleets.

Outside North America the CRJ900 continues in service with operators including Lufthansa CityLine, Air Nostrum and several African and Middle Eastern carriers.

Safety

No significant developments since 21 September 2026.

A Jazz Aviation CRJ was involved in a ground collision at LaGuardia Airport on 22 March 2026. The NTSB issued a preliminary report and the investigation remains open. No findings have been published and nothing about the cause should be inferred until the board reports.

Sources