In Zurich on Thursday, Swiss regional carrier Helvetic Airways celebrated the delivery of their first Embraer E190-E2 aircraft. Additionally, South African Airways took delivery of the first of four Airbus A350-900s on order and announced they would be leasing two more.
Helvetic Airways received their first Embraer E190-E2 in a ceremony Thursday at their Zurich, Switzerland headquarters. According to the Embraer Press Release, this delivery is part of a firm order for 12 of the type, plus an option for an additional 12, which can be converted to Embraer E195-E2s. At the delivery ceremony, Embraer Commercial Aviation Vice President of Europe, Russia and Central Asia, Martyn Holmes stated,
“As the only Swiss airline to operate Embraer aircraft, Helvetic Airways already stands out from the competition. And, with our state-of-the-art E190-E2, it now has the perfect aircraft, in terms of environmental sustainability and to maximize the profitability of its flight operations."
The E190-E2 delivery is part of Helvetic’s fleet renewal program and will be configured in a single-class 110 seat layout, serving on both domestic and international routes. The E190-E2 is the first of three models in the E2 range and offers a 17.3% reduction in fuel burn compared to the previous generation aircraft. The aircraft has a range of 3,293 miles, about 600 miles longer that the E190 and only requires basic maintenance after 10K flight hours. Helvetic’s new E190-E2 is the first to be powered by Pratt & Whitney GTF engines and current E-jet pilots require less than three days of training to transition to the E2 series. In a press release from Pratt & Whitney on Thursday, Helvetic Airways CEO, Tobias Pogorevc said,
“We are excited to welcome the first GTF-powered E190-E2 aircraft to our fleet as we look to the future. Our passengers will benefit from the quieter ride and the environment will benefit from reduced emissions delivered by the advanced technology of this new aircraft.”
Pratt & Whitney has been selected as the exclusive engine and auxiliary power unit (APU) provider for the E2 series of aircraft. Pratt's APS2600E APU provides increased power and allows for increased altitude for ETOPS (Extended Operations).
Source(s): Embraer, Pratt & Whitney
South African Airways Receives First A350-900
Earlier this week, South African Airways (SAA) took delivery of their first of four Airbus A350-900s. The company also announced that they would be leasing two additional A350s as part of their plan to improve passenger offerings and commercial prospects for the airline. In Thursday’s announcement, SAA’s Acting CEO, Zuks Ramasia stated,
We welcome the first A350 home on South African Soil. The introduction of the A350s offers a new beginning for the airline and will contribute to the airline’s operational efficiencies and get SAA back on track. It is an important step-change as we continue to make progress to transform our business and return the airline to financial sustainability in the shortest time possible.”
SAA’s new Airbus A350-900s will be configured with 30 Business Class (lie-flat seats) and 309 Economy Class seats, with the first six rows in economy offering more legroom. The newly delivered aircraft will operate on the Johannesburg to New York (JFK) route, replacing an A340-600. SAA expects to have all four aircraft in operation by mid-December, with the two additional leased aircraft to be delivered new from the Airbus factory in Toulouse. These Airbus A350-900 XWBs (Extra Wide Body) aircraft will be sub-leased from Air Mauritus for a period of three years and will be powered by Rolls Royce Trent XWB engines.
Source(s): South African Airways, Airbus