The Embraer E175-E2 recently made its inaugural flight from the company’s facility in São José dos Campos, Brazil.

It is the third member of the E-Jets E2 family, and the maiden flight is the start of a rigorous 24-month programme of flight tests.

John Slattery, president and CEO of Embraer Commercial Aviation (www.embraer.com), said: “The inaugural flight of the E175-E2 marks the completion of our vision to produce a family of new-generation commercial aircraft that bring unparalleled cost savings to our customers and exceptional comfort for their passengers.

“The E190-E2 and the E195-E2 are already stellar performers; the E175-E2 is just as impressive.

“We’re eager to get working on certification.”

Embraer will use three aircraft for the E175-E2 certification programme.

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 ‘outfitted with interior furnishings’.

The E175-E2, which has an additional row of seats compared to the first-generation E175, can be configured with 80 seats in two classes or up to 90 in a single class.

It will save up to 16% in fuel and 25% in maintenance costs per seat compared to the E175; it will also have the longest maintenance intervals in the single-aisle jet category, with 10,000 flight hours for basic checks and ‘no calendar limit’ for typical E-Jet operations.

This means an extra 15 days of utilisation over 10 years compared to current-generation E-Jets.

The E175-E2 features new Pratt & Whitney GTF PW1700G ultra-high-bypass-ratio engines, a completely new wing, full fly-by-wire controls and new landing gear.

Compared to the first-generation E175, 75% of the aircraft systems
are new.