Republic Airways Holdings Inc.announced today it has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with Embraer to acquire 24 new Embraer 190 aircraft with the option to convert any of the aircraft in the order to the larger Embraer 195 model. The LOI is subject to final documentation, including final commercial terms.
Under the agreement, deliveries would begin in mid 2011, with the first six aircraft arriving by the end of the year. The aircraft would be configured in a single-class arrangement and include stretch seating, a key on-board amenity offered in Republic's branded operation. The Embraer 190 would offer 99 seats, while the E195 would be configured with 116 if Republic chose to convert any of the orders.
"We are delighted to be able to increase our fleet of E190 aircraft and possibly add the E195 to our fleet," said Bryan Bedford, chairman, president and CEO of Republic Airways. "Republic has enjoyed a strong and successful, 12-year partnership with Embraer and this letter of intent is a further reflection of that partnership. The E190 is a consistent passenger favorite due to its significant personal space and amenities and offers us unique mission capability from Denver, Milwaukee and Kansas City."
Bedford added, "When finalized, the agreement will assist us in the re-optimization of our fleet by replacing smaller regional jets with these larger and more economical aircraft."
"Increasing our average seats per aircraft will significantly further our progress in improving the efficiency of our network by allowing us to better match capacity with demand in a variety of markets," said Daniel Shurz, vice president of strategy and planning.
Republic Airways Holdings, based in Indianapolis, Indiana is an airline holding company that owns Chautauqua Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Lynx Aviation, Midwest Airlines, Republic Airlines and Shuttle America, collectively "the airlines." The airlines offer scheduled passenger service on approximately 1,600 flights daily to 127 cities in 45 states, Canada, Costa Rica, and Mexico under branded operations at Frontier and Midwest, and through fixed-fee airline services agreements with five major U.S. airlines. The fixed-fee flights are operated under an airline partner brand, such as AmericanConnection, Continental Express, Delta Connection, United Express, and US Airways Express. The airlines currently employ approximately 11,000 aviation professionals and operate 287 aircraft.
