Embraer has carried out the inaugural flight of E195-E2, the new member of its E2 aircraft family, ahead of schedule.

During the 2h flight, the E195-E2 took off from Embraer’s facility in São José dos Campos, Brazil, marking the beginning of the aircraft certification campaign. The aircraft is the largest plane of the E2 family.

Two aircraft will be used for the E195-E2 certification campaign. The first prototype will be used for the aerodynamic and performance tests, while the second prototype will be used for the validation of maintenance tasks and of the interior. The latter will make its inaugural flight by the end of this year.

The E195-E2 is scheduled to enter into service by the first half of 2019, with Azul Brazilian Airlines.

Embraer commercial aviation COO Luís Carlos Affonso said: “With 1.4m 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.

“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 lifecycle cost in the industry.”

"The E195-E2 becomes the aircraft with the highest aspect ratio among single-aisle jets, thus increasing fuel efficiency."

Compared with Embraer’s current generation E195 aircraft model, the E195-E2 has three more rows of seats. The E195-E2 can be configured with 120 seats in two classes of service, or up to 146 in a single class.

Embraer has so far secured 275 firm orders for its E2 family aircraft, including 90 for the E195-E2.

The company has also won 415 options, purchase rights, and letters-of-intent, totalling 690 commitments from airline customers and leasing companies for the E2 family.

Image: Embraer’s new E195-E2 aircraft. Photo: courtesy of Embraer.