Embraer - ERJ-135
Embraer decided to capitalise on the success of the ERJ-145 in September 1997 by building an aircraft designed for lower-demand markets. The maiden flight for the ERJ-135 was on 4th July 1998, and it entered commercial service in August 1999 with Continental Express as the launch customer.
The ERJ 135 is based on the ERJ-145, with 95% parts commonality meaning that there are considerable operational advantages such as spares holding and crew ratings. The primary systems, wings, tail unit and flight deck are identical to the ERJ-145, but the fuselage is 3.53m shorter.
The Rolls-Royce AE3007 A, installed in the ERJ 135 provides up to 7,426lb of maximum take-off thrust.
Model variants include the ERJ-135ER and the ERJ-135LR. Both the extended range and long range versions have improved range capability and excel on short airfields and hot and high operations.
In 2000, Embraer launched the development of the ERJ-135 based Legacy corporate jet. The first flight of the converted ERJ-135 was in March 2001. The Legacy has additional fuel capacity giving a range of 5930km with 10 passengers.
