The Brazilian aircraft maker Embraer’s biggest passenger jet ever has taken to the skies more than three months ahead of schedule, giving the world’s third-largest commercial plane maker more time to refine the aircraft before it enters service in early 2019. John Slattery, the head of commercial aviation for Embraer, said the Brazilian company was maintaining its delivery timeline after a “very successful” first flight for the E195-E2, which was originally scheduled for the second half of this year. “We do have a lot of buffer, clearly. And we are devoting that to maturing the aircraft before entry into service,” Mr Slattery said, adding that he expected the milestone to help sales campaigns for the 120 to 130-seat aircraft. The new E195-E2 offers three more rows of seats and a more efficient engine than the current-generation E195, improving fuel burn by 24 per cent per seat and directly challenging Bombardier’s new CS100. Mr Slattery said he saw healthy demand for the biggest member of the re-engined E-Jet family in South East Asia, western Europe, North America and Latin America. The E195-E2 programme remains on budget and in line with specifications, he added. The Brazilian airline Azul, which has placed a firm order for 30 of the aircraft, will be the first operator of the new jet. <em>* </em><em>Reuters</em> business@thenational.ae Follow The National's Business section on <a href="https://twitter.com/Ind_Insights">Twitter</a>
