U.S. President Trump on Thursday warned that the U.S. may impose a 50% tariff on aircraft imported from Canada, marking the latest escalation in his trade dispute with the country as tensions with Prime Minister Mark Carney intensify.
The president said the move was in retaliation for Canada’s refusal to certify jets produced by Savannah, Georgia–based Gulfstream Aerospace.
On Thursday, Trump wrote on Truth Social that the U.S. would revoke certification for all Canadian aircraft, including those manufactured by Quebec-based Bombardier, the country’s largest aircraft manufacturer.
“If, for any reason, this situation is not immediately corrected, I am going to charge Canada a 50% tariff on any and all aircraft sold into the United States of America,” Trump stated.
Trump further declared that he is ‘decertifying’ Bombardier Global Express business jets and ‘all aircraft made in Canada.’
According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, 150 Global Express jets are currently registered in the U.S. and operated by 115 different carriers, while several American airlines also utilize Bombardier CRJ regional jets.
In 2017, during the first Trump administration, the U.S. Commerce Department had imposed tariffs on Bombardier’s CSeries commercial passenger jets, alleging that the Canadian manufacturer was selling them in the American market below cost.
U.S. officials argued that the Montreal-based company had relied on unfair government subsidies to offer the jets at artificially low prices.
The U.S. International Trade Commission later determined that Bombardier had not harmed the U.S. industry. Since then, the company has shifted its focus to the business and private jet sector.
Trump’s warning came after his weekend threat that the U.S. would levy a 100% tariff on Canadian imports if Canada proceeded with a proposed trade agreement with China.
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