Embraer and Air Peace have announced that the airline has ordered five Embraer E175 aircraft, the second-smallest variant in the E-jet family.
According to Embraer, the first aircraft of the order, which has a list price value of $288.3 million, will be delivered in 2024. “This acquisition is in line with Air Peace’s determination to become the operator of the largest and youngest fleet of aircraft in Africa,” the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) commented.
“Already an operator of Embraer’s newest and largest jet, the E195-E2, these smaller aircraft will complement the airlines’ existing fleet, allowing Air Peace to dynamically match capacity to demand, protecting yields and route viability,” Embraer continued.
Currently, Air Peace has a fleet of 34 aircraft, 15 of which are inactive, ch-aviation.com data showed. Furthermore, of the 34, five are wet leased in: two Airbus A320s from SmartLynx Airlines, two Boeing 737-700 from Eznis Airways, and one Boeing 737-800 from Syphax Airlines.
In addition to five Embraer E195-E2s, the airline also operates a total of eight Embraer ERJ145s.
“This is another important step in helping to realize our ambition to connect the whole of Nigeria with the entire African continent, while also feeding passengers into long-haul flights from our Lagos hub,” Allen Onyema, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Air Peace, said. Onyema also noted that the order will help with the airline’s ‘no-city-left-behind’ initiative, which ensures connectivity for passengers and by extension, Africa itself.
On average, the airline’s fleet is 19.3 years old.
“Already an E2 operator, it now makes sense to upgauge their ERJ145 fleet, offering passengers more seats and comfort with the E175,” Stephan Hannemann, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, Head of Africa & Middle East Region at Embraer Commercial Aviation, noted. “The commonality of the cockpits between the E1 and E2 fleet also simplifies aircrew costs and management.”
Both executives mentioned the fact that Air Peace and Embraer will establish local maintenance centers in Nigeria, without detailing further.
As of June 30, 2023, Embraer had a backlog of 271 commercial aircraft, 82 of which were E175s. Other aircraft in the backlog included 16 E190-E2 and 173 E195-E2s.
