Following their first order for two Embraer E190-E2s only six months ago, Congo Airways has placed a firm order for two E195-E2s. The total order for four E2s is valued at US $272 million at current list prices and the order will be included in the company’s fourth quarter backlog.
Today (January 13, 2021), Embraer announced that Congo Airways has placed a firm order for two Embraer E195-E2 aircraft following an order for two of the smaller E190-E2s only six months ago. The total value of the four jet order is US $272 million at current list prices and the new firm order will be included in the company’s fourth quarter backlog. Congo Airways’ E995-E2s will be configured in a dual class 120 seat layout featuring 12 Business and 108 Economy Class seats, an additional 25% capacity versus the 96 seat configuration they selected for their E190-E2s. The E2 deliveries are expected to commence in 2022. Currently, there are 206 Embraer aircraft operating in Africa with 56 airlines in 29 countries.
In Wednesday’s order announcement, Congo Airways’ CEO, Desire Bantu, said,
“We see an opportunity in our market and the crisis we are all facing for Congo Airways to emerge stronger – which is why we are not waiting to place this further order. These new jets will allow us to extend our passenger and cargo operations regionally to high demand destinations such as Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Abidjan. As we prepare for future success, we will have the flexibility, and the right sized, most efficient aircraft, to serve our customers as the market returns.”
Also commenting on the additional E2 order, Embraer Commercial Aviation’s Vice President of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Cesar Pereira, added,
“Africa has for too long been thought of as a market of mostly low frequencies and long thin routes. As airlines start ramp up their operations, the E2 family of aircraft is perfectly positioned to right size routes previously operated by narrowbodies, while keeping frequencies and adjusting capacity to new levels. Congo Airways will benefit from the flexibility provided by the common cockpit on the E2 jet family meaning their flight crews can transition seamlessly between variants.”
Headquartered in São dos Campos, Brazil, Embraer is a global aerospace companies with businesses in Commercial and Executive aviation, Agricultural Aviation, Defense and Security. The company designs, develops, manufactures and markets aircraft and systems, while providing after-sales services and support. Founded in 1969, the company has delivered more than 8,000 aircraft and on average, every ten seconds and Embraer aircraft takes off somewhere in the world, transporting over 145 million passengers annually. Embraer is the leading manufacturer of aircraft up to 150 seats and maintains industrial units, offices, service and parts distribution centers across the Americas, Africa, Asia and Europe.
Source: Embraer