Well the first day of the Paris Air Show has been and gone. Lets look at the news of the day
New planes from Embraer
The big headline of the day is Embraer, who are going after Bombardier with the latest refresh of the E-Jets – the E-Jet E2.
Rendering – Embraer
The Embraer E2 is an evolution of the current Embraer E-Jet series with three new aircraft forming the core of the family:
- The E-175 E2 – Entry Into Service: 2020
- The E-190 E2 – Entry Into Service: 2018
- The E-195 E2 – Entry Into Service: 2019
These aircraft feature more seating than the current Embraer E175/190/195 aircraft, as well as new engines by Pratt and Whitney with the E-175 E2 using a PurePower 1700 Geared Turbofan whilst the larger members of the family use a PurePower 1900 Geared Turbofan.
So what sort of seating configurations can these new aircraft take? That’s the interesting one, as it takes the fight to Bombardier’s front door:
Model 2-Class 1 Class High Density E-175 E2 80 88 90 E-190 E2 97 106 114 E-195 E2 118 132 144
Those numbers meet or exceed what Bombardier are doing with the C-Series. They also are knocking on the doors of Boeing and Airbus’s smaller narrowbody aircraft too.
The designs have met with great approval with Skywest and IFLC being the launch customers. Skywest will take the E-175 E2 with a firm order for 100 and purchase rights for another 100 of the type, whilst IFLC will launch the 97-seat E-190 E2 and 118-seat E-195 E2 with a Letter of Intent to cover 100 aircraft, split between 25 firm plus 25 options for the E-190 and 25 firm plus 25 options for the E-195. There are also 65 other additional letters of intent in the line as well, taking Embraer to a massive launch possibility of 365 frames. This compares with the Bombardier C-Series, which has taken 63 orders and 49 options since it’s launch.
Other Orders
GECAS (GE Capital Aviation Services) is joining the 787-10 party with an order for 10 frames. Whilst the aircraft isn’t ready for launch itself, it might possibly do during this week’s Paris Air show. GECAS is targeting these aircraft at operators who are (or will be) 787 operators for Transatlantic and Transpacific service
Qatar Airways will be ordering Nine Boeing 777-300ER’s in a move to expand their fleet. This inculdes 2 aircraft that have been sitting on the Boeing order books as “undefined customer”.
Lufthansa has firmed up an order with Airbus to provide a 100 narrowbody aircraft -30 Airbus A320CEO (current engine option) with Sharklets, 35 A320neo and 35 A321neo aircraft
IFLC (International Finance and Lease Company) has also added to its inventory of aircraft with orders for 50 more Airbus A320neo aircraft
Doric Lease Corporation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding to acquire 20 A380’s, which proves I was wrong. Someone actually wants to buy the A380 other than Emirates and Singapore Airlines. Discussions are in place where to place these aircraft.
Odyssey Airlines have been confirmed as the UK launch customer of the C-Series, with an order for 10 aircraft for all business routes for Odyssey non-stop all-business class flights from London City airport to New York and other locations in Europe with the CS100. I’ll be putting Odyssey under the microscope later on…
Skymark Airlines of Japan have agreed with Boeing that they will be replacing their current Boeing 737NG fleet with a 737-MAX fleet. No numbers yet on how many aircraft this will involve, but Skymark already operate 30 Boeing 737-NG’s.
And that’s day 1 over, with Airbus and Embraer sharing the spoils of a a very good day. There’s lots to look forward to with the E-Jets E2 series.
And yes, Odyssey Airlines. This requires a deep bit of research….
