MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Embraer's newest 2nd generation jet takes to the skies

The E175-E2 is the third member of the E-Jets E2 family.

Embraer's E175-E2 (second generation, that is) Saturday made its maiden flight from the company's facilities in São José dos Campos, starting a certification process which may take up to two years, it was announced.

“Today's E175-E2 flight marks the fulfillment of our vision to produce a family of next-generation commercial aircraft that provide unprecedented cost savings to our customers, exceptional comfort for their passengers and fewer emissions to the planet,” said Embraer CEO John Slattery.

The E175-E2 is the third member of the E-Jets E2 family. “The E190-E2 and the E195-E2 are already star artists. The E175-E2 is equally impressive,“ Slattery went on.

”We are eager to work on certification. My sincere thanks to all Embraer workers who helped make this day possible,” the CEO added.

The E175-E2 departed at 11:07 a.m. local time from the runway adjacent to the Embraer Faria Lima complex and flew for two hours and 18 minutes.

The crew consisted of Embraer's Captain Mozart Louzada, First Officer Wander Almodóvar Golfetto and flight engineers Gilberto Meira Cardoso and Mario Ito. Their job was to evaluate the performance of the aircraft, the quality of the flight and the behaviour of the systems.

Embraer will need three units for the E175-E2 certification campaign. The first and second prototypes will be used for aerodynamic, performance and system tests. The third prototype will be used to validate maintenance tasks and will be equipped with interior furniture.

The E175-E2 has an additional row of seats compared to the first generation E175 and can be configured with 80 seats in two classes, or up to 90 in a single class. The aircraft will save up to 16% on fuel and 25% on maintenance costs per seat compared to the E175.

Like the E190-E2 and E195-E2, the E175-E2 will have the longest maintenance intervals in the single-aisle jet category with 10,000 flight hours for basic checks and no calendar limit for regular operations which translates into 15 additional days of aircraft use over a period of ten years compared to the current generation E-Jets.

The E175-E2 also introduces new Pratt & Whitney GTF ™ PW1700G engines with ultra-high bypass ratio, a completely new wing, complete cable flight controls and a new undercarriage. Compared to the first generation E175, 75% of the aircraft's systems are new.