Republic Airways Holdings Inc. (“Republic”) announced today that it has signed a Letter of Intent (“LOI”) with Brazil’s Embraer S.A. (“Embraer”) for an order of 100 E175 aircraft, with the right to convert to E175-E2 aircraft. In addition to the firm aircraft, Republic has secured purchase rights on an additional 100 aircraft. The announcement was made at the Farnborough International Airshow in Farnborough, England.
“Over the past two decades we have acquired more than 350 jet aircraft through our partnership with Embraer,” said Bryan Bedford, Republic’s president and chief executive officer. “Through this partnership we have delivered industry leading safety, service and reliability to our codeshare partners, and this order positions Republic to focus on the next stage of growth in the North American regional market. The EJet has proven to be a product that allows Republic to provide a reliable and seamless product experience with our mainline partners, and when coupled with our 5,500 dedicated aviation professionals, it delivers on our long-term vision of being the regional airline of choice.”
“We are pleased to expand our partnership with Republic as one of our largest and most valuable customers,” said John Slattery, president and chief executive officer, Embraer Commercial Aviation. “With a relationship spanning 20 years, we are immensely honored to continue being an integral part of their success as they expand their fleet with additional E175s. Republic is a critical component of Embraer’s history, and we are absolutely committed to providing a product that appeals to their customers while delivering solutions that increase profitability.”
The LOI, which calls for a definitive purchase agreement to be finalized later this year, secures Republic’s delivery positions over the next several years. A key element of the agreement is the flexibility Republic will have to allocate the order across aircraft configurations on both the current E175 and the future E175-E2 platform, ensuring the airline can adapt quickly to tailor solutions to the unique needs of its mainline partners.
Republic Airways, parent company of Republic Airline, operates a fleet of about 190 Embraer 170/175 aircraft and offers scheduled passenger service with about 950 daily flights to 100 cities in 40 U.S. states, Canada, the Caribbean and Central America. The Indianapolis-based airline provides fixed-fee flights operated under its major airline partner brands of American Eagle, Delta Connection and United Express. The airline employs about 5,500 aviation professionals. Visit www.rjet.com for more information, follow the company on Instagram, Twitter and YouTube, and connect on Facebook or LinkedIn. ACN
