The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has thrown its weight behind US President Donald Trump, after he raised objections over Canada’s perceived refusal to certify several Gulfstream private jets.
In his social media attack against Canada on January 29, 2026, President Trump threatened to “decertify” Bombardier Global Express jets and “all aircraft” made north of the US border.
According to Bloomberg, on February 2, 2026, at the Changi Aviation Summit in Singapore the FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford raised his own issues over foreign countries not certifying US-made planes.
“Our concern is whether or not sufficient resources are being applied to US products equal to the resources that we’re applying to certify foreign products. So, we just want a level playing field,” Bedford told reporters.
In his original social medial President Trump claimed that Canada had “illegally” refused to certify Gulfstream’s G500, G600, G700, and G800 aircraft and additionally threatened a 50% tariff on Canada for any aircraft sold into the US if the situation is not “immediately corrected”.
Trump’s latest Canada eruption: taking aim at Bombardier and threatening new tariffs on planes pic.twitter.com/d4BLxVV3am
— Josh Wingrove (@josh_wingrove) January 29, 2026
Gulfstream’s G800 aircraft was certified by the FAA and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in April 2025 while the G700 was approved in the US in 2024. The FAA certified the G500 in 2018 and the G600 in 2019.
Bloomberg reported that Bedford said that when the FAA certifies an aircraft, it expects other aviation regulators to accept its certification.
Bedford told reporters that other countries’ aircraft safety validation process “shouldn’t take five, six, and seven years”.
While the US administration said that any decertification would not affect Canadian-built aircraft already in operation the row could disrupt the North American aerospace industry and put jobs at risk.
Bombardier shares dropped 9% on January 30, 2026, following President Trump’s post on social media.
On January 29, 2026, Bombardier issued a statement acknowledging it had “taken note” of President Trump’s post.
The company hit back saying that Bombardier “employs more than 3,000 people in the U.S. across 9 major facilities and creates thousands of U.S. jobs through 2,800 suppliers”.
Bombardier added that the firm was actively expanding in the US, including the introduction of a new service center in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
“Thousands of private and civilian jets built in Canada fly in the U.S. every day. We hope this is quickly resolved to avoid a significant impact to air traffic and the flying public,” Bombardier said.
