Embraer

Embraer S.A. (Portuguese pronunciation: [ẽbɾaˈɛɾ]) is a Brazilian aerospace conglomerate that produces commercial, military, executive and agricultural aircraft and provides aeronautical services. It is headquartered in São José dos Campos, São Paulo State.

The company competes internationally with Canadian rival Bombardier for the title of third-largest airplane maker after Airbus and Boeing.

History

Seeking to develop a domestic aircraft industry, the Brazilian government made several investments in this area during the 1940s and '50s. However, it was not until 1969 that Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica (Embraer) was created as a government-owned corporation. Its first president, Ozires Silva, was a government appointee, and the company initially produced a turboprop passenger aircraft, the Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante, project captained by Silva.

Early growth

The Brazilian Government contributed to Embraer's early growth by providing production contracts. The company sold solely to the domestic market until 1975.

Embraer E-Jet family

The Embraer E-Jet family is a series of narrow-body medium-range twin-engine jet airliners produced by Brazilian aerospace conglomerate Embraer. Launched at the Paris Air Show in 1999, and entering production in 2002, the aircraft series has been a commercial success. The aircraft is used by mainline and regional airlines around the world. As of 31 December 2014, there is a backlog of 249 firm orders for the E-Jets, 502 options and 1090 units delivered.

Design and development

The Embraer E-Jets line is composed of two main commercial families and a business jet variant. The smaller E170 and E175 make up the base model aircraft. The E190 and E195 are stretched versions, with different engines and larger wing, horizontal stabilizer and landing gear structures. The 170 and 175 share 95% commonality, as do the 190 and 195. The two families share near 89% commonality, with identical fuselage cross-sections and avionics, featuring the Honeywell Primus Epic Electronic flight instrument system (EFIS) suite. The E-jets also have winglets to improve efficiency.

Embraer ERJ 145 family

The Embraer ERJ 145 family is a series of twin-engine regional jets produced by Embraer, a Brazilian aerospace company. Family members include the ERJ 135 (37 passengers), ERJ 140 (44 passengers), and ERJ 145 (50 passengers), as well as the Legacy business jet and the R-99 family of military aircraft. The ERJ 145 is the largest of the group. Each jet in the series is powered by two turbofan engines. The family's primary competition comes from the Bombardier CRJ regional jets.

Development

The ERJ-145 was designed for a perceived new market for regional jet aircraft, where the increased speed, comfort and passenger appeal would outweigh the inherent fuel economy of the turboprop aircraft which were in service and in development. In order to reduce the development cost, it used the EMB120 nose and the same fuselage cross-section.

Early design

The ERJ 145 was launched at the Paris Airshow in 1989 as a stretched and turbofan-powered modification of the EMB 120 Brasilia. Key components of this design included: