SAO JOSE DOS CAMPOS, Brazil -- Ten months after the first flight of the E190-E2, Embraer performed the inaugural flight of another member of the E2 family, ahead of schedule.

The E195-E2, the largest aircraft of the E-Jets family, made its maiden flight on March 29. The flight, originally scheduled for the second half of the year, happened just three weeks after roll out.

"With 1.4 meters longer wingspan than the E190-E2, the E195-E2 becomes the aircraft with the highest aspect ratio among single-aisle jets thus increasing fuel efficiency," said Luís Carlos Affonso, COO, Embraer Commercial Aviation. "We also applied experience from over 17 million hours of flight and 100 jet airline customers to develop the E195-E2 with the most competitive life cycle cost in the industry." Embraer says the airplane will save up to 24 percent in fuel and 20 percent in maintenance costs per seat compared to the current E195.

Embraer will use two aircraft for the E195-E2 certification campaign. The first prototype will be used for the aerodynamic and performance tests. The second prototype, which will also make its inaugural flight by the end of this year, will be used for the validation of maintenance tasks and of the interior. The E195-E2 will entry into service in the first half of 2019, with Azul Brazilian Airlines.

The E195-E2 has three additional rows of seats, when compared to the current generation E195, and it can be configured with 120 seats in two classes of service, or up to 146 in a single class. The aircraft also has a significant increase in range of 450 nautical miles, which allows trips of up to 2,450 nautical miles.

The E2 has accrued 275 firm orders, including 90 for the E195-E2, in addition to 415 options, purchase rights, and letters-of-intent, totaling 690 commitments from airline customers and leasing companies. Currently, the E-Jets are operating with about 70 customers in 50 countries, being the global leader in the segment of aircraft with up to 130 seats, with over 50 percent market share.

Source: Embraer