Norwegian regional carrier Widerøe has concluded a deal to acquire up to 15 Embraer E-Jet E2s. The agreement, announced on January 17, is valued at up to $873m and includes three firm orders for the E190-E2, along with purchase options for an additional 12 E2 family aircraft.
Commenting on the deal, Embraer Commercial Aviation’s Chief Commercial Officer Arjan Meijer said: “It’s always an important moment for us when we add a new airline to our family of operators. It’s even better to be part of a step change in that customer’s operations – our next generation E190-E2s will also be the first jets in Widerøe’s fleet. The opportunities for both Embraer and Widerøe as the airline seeks to expand and move beyond only turboprop operations, present an exciting future. A great way to start 2017.”
Widerøe CEO Stein Nilsen added: “Our decision to choose the Embraer family of next generation E2 aircraft for our move into jet operations is based on the need for a high quality passenger experience, ease and flexibility of operations, and lowest through life costs. The result of our evaluation determined the E2 family of aircraft, coupled with Embraer’s world class customer support, as the best solution for our airline. We’re excited at the prospect of being among the first operators of Embraer’s next generation of aircraft, which feature significant environmental improvements in both noise and fuel efficiency while still improving performance. The flexibility offered by Embraer’s family of same type rated E2 aircraft will enable us to build a right sized fleet, as a supplement to our existing fleet, in accordance with market requirements.”
Widerøe will configure its incoming E2s, deliveries of which are planned for 2018, in a 114-seat, single-class layout. The deal increases Embraer’s backlog for the type to 275 firm orders, plus 415 commitments.
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