Trump vs. Bombardier Will He Be Able to Ban Jet Sales in the US?

The bottom line is this: Trump claims that Bombardier must stop selling planes in the United States, but that's not a law, and legal advisors say it's not clear who has the power to ensure that.

If you just skim the aviation news headlines, you've likely heard the latest hotspot of the ongoing trade feud between the United States and Canada. On Sept. 7, 2026, President Trump delivered one of his trademark “all caps” statements to the online news outlet Truth Social, promising that the Canadian-based aircraft manufacturer behind some of the world's most popular private jets, Bombardier, will not be able to sell planes in the U.S. anymore. His reasoning? He says that the company's products "aren't good enough," but it is obvious from the reading that this is more about the leverage of trade than the quality of the products.

What Trump Said

The post is a classic Trump grievance and rally call. He said Bombardier gets over half its revenue from Americans; he said the other half from Canada is “stonewalling” American businesses. He singled out one instance in which Canada delayed certification of Gulfstream Aerospace jets, the other arm of a Canadian business, as an example of an "uneven playing field.

What he was asking for, at least in theory, is that Bombardier begin manufacturing its planes in the United States if it's going to have access to US customers. Otherwise, the post says, the company is 'locked out'.

He didn't just stop there, though. The message ended with a series of nationalist catch-cry lines "buy American," "fly American," "drink American," even "sail on Lake America" more like political slogans than trade policy. It's important to note that Bombardier is not in the business of making commercial airliners at this time and its current business is focused on private and business jets as well as legacy regional aircraft that are still in service but no longer being produced. It's a little confusing when Trump refers to Americans "flying on American airliners" as he seems to have merged private aviation with commercial flight.

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This Isn't Actually New

If all of this sounds like deja vu all over again, then it is. A year ago, Trump threatened to "decertify" all Canadian-built planes, including Bombardier, and imposed a big tariff on Canadian planes. The episode was connected to the same issue regarding the certification delays at Gulfstream in Canada. In the end, the planes remained certified, sales continued and life went on.

This latest outburst didn't come out of nowhere, either. It arrived just hours before Canada's retaliatory tariffs, which are as high as 50% on certain U.S. imports, began. Canada and the United States have been embroiled in a trade war that's been brewing for well over a year. The Bombardier post was the news, but it was just another escalation in the much larger economic standoff between the two countries.

But Can Trump Actually Pull This Off?

Here's where things get murkier. No matter how convincing it is, a social media post is not equivalent to an executive order or formal rule of trade. As yet, none such has been issued and Bombardier's planes are still fully certified by the Federal Aviation Administration. This means that right now an American buyer could buy a Bombardier jet.

But Trump doesn't have anything. The administration used the Section 232 investigations before specifically when imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum and Commerce even initiated a Section 232 investigation for imported aircraft, jet engines, and parts in May 2025. The true social post itself may not yet have any legal clout, but there is a structure that already exists that can be used in future to justify some restrictions.

But industry analysts aren't so sure that a total ban is even feasible. Aviation expert Richard Aboulafia of AeroDynamic Advisory has noted that it would be difficult to see private jet buyers giving up on current orders from Bombardier and "even more difficult to envision the practical implementation of such a ban. The convolutions are compounded by the fact that Bombardier's planes are currently eligible for duty-free treatment in the USMCA trade agreement that Trump signed during his first term.

If You're Watching the Trade War, This is What it Means.

Most people who travel the world's roads and paths every day might not feel the private jet urge. It's a good sign of the changing dynamics of the trade relationship between the two nations, though, and potentially could eventually extend to commercial aviation, cross-border business travel, or even partnership loyalty programs between US and Canadian carriers in the future.

Some of the salient points to keep in mind as this conflict plays out:

• There is no official ban on it as of yet. There is no executive order, tariff notice or FAA rule that bans or limits the sale of Bombardier in the United States as of this writing.
• This is because Bombardier has established strong connections in the United States. The company has thousands of employees in the United States, and thousands of suppliers in the United States, located in various states, such as Texas, Florida, Arizona, and Connecticut.
• It is battle two of the same battle. A similar threat by Trump had been issued over the same Gulfstream certification issue in January of 2026, but had no impact.
• USMCA complicates enforcement. Trump's new restriction would be subject to the same limitation as current duty-free orders on Bombardier jets, which could make it harder to enforce the ban.

Bombardier wasn't silent. The firm, which was quick to respond to Trump's post, challenged this by emphasizing its U.S. presence, noting it's responsible for tens of thousands of U.S. jobs and the U.S. aerospace industry as a whole is a “continual trade surplus winner.” It's a timely reminder that this is not a one-way street. American workers and suppliers have a stake in the outcome as well.

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The Bottom Line

The headline may be a good one, but Trump's assertion that “there's no more selling Bombardier in the United States” obscures the truth. While there is no formal ban, Bombardier's jets are FAA-certified, and trade agreements such as the USMCA make enforcement a legal challenge. 

There's good reason to hope the same will happen this time; more rhetoric than policy. Yet, trade tensions between the U.S. and Canada are far from over and it is likely that this is not its last time in the crossfire.