Belavia signs contract for two Embraer 195LR jets

The national air carrier Belavia and the Brazilian aerospace conglomerate Embraer have signed a contract to deliver two Embraer 195LR jets in 2014.

The Brazilian company will deliver the jets to the new owner in May-June 2014, the press service informed. The news had been announced at a press conference in Salzburg, Austria, during the General Assembly of the European Regions Airline Association. The press service cited Belavia First Deputy Director General Gleb Parkhamovich who said: “We believe that a more capacious Embraer 195LR jet is a perfect airplane that will meet the growing demand for Belavia flights. Considering the network of destinations and taking into account economic efficiency, Embraer jets are the best choice for us”.

Embraer 195LR jets are medium-range jet airliners meant to carry 107 passengers. The jets are fitted with 96 economy-class and 11 business-class seats. They are able to fly up to 4,000 km with the maximum speed of 980 km/h.

The press service reminded that the cooperation between the national air carrier and the Brazilian company was established last year. In the autumn of 2012 the jet manufacturer delivered two new Embraer 175LR jets to Belarus. “There was only positive feedback about these jets over the year of operation, therefore a decision was made to buy more Embraer planes to upgrade our fleet of aircrafts,” the company said.

Belarus’ Transport and Communications Minister Anatoly Sivak had said earlier that the expansion of Belavia’s fleet of aircrafts will ensure the further reduction of the prime cost of its tickets. “One of the reasons why the cost of tickets is pretty high today is the failure to expand the fleet of aircrafts in time: there was time when the company bought just one or two jets per year, which lagged behind people’s expectations,” Anatoly Sivak said. He noted that the company is now trying to catch up.

Founded in 1996, the national air carrier Belavia is the largest air carrier in Belarus. It is based in Minsk National Airport and offers regular flights to 42 destinations in Europe and Asia. In 1997 Belavia joined the IATA, in 2010 the European Regions Airline Association (ERAA). Belavia’s services meet the highest international safety standards. Following an operational safety audit by the IATA the air carrier joined the list of IOSA operators (IOSA – IATA Operational Safety Audit) in 2008. The company uses 21 aircrafts, including six Boeing-737/500 jets, six Boeing-737/300 jets, two Embraer 175 jets, four CRJ-100 / CRJ-200 jets and three Tu-154М).