British Airways subsidiary BA CityFlyer has received its first Embraer 190 aircraft as its regional fleet overhaul nears completion.

The new 98-seat jet will operate the BA8706 service from London City to Edinburgh today. It will then operate the Amsterdam and Zurich routes before returning to Edinburgh.

Embraer recently secured regulatory approval for the 190 to make the steep approach necessary to land at City Airport.

BA CityFlyer managing director Peter Simpson says: "We are now on the last leg of our fleet replacement programme and our passengers will benefit from the extra space these new, greener aircraft offer."

BA 190
 © BA CityFlyer

CityFlyer placed an order for six Embraer 170s and five 190s in December 2008 to replace its BAE Systems Avro RJs. It has taken delivery of all of its 170s.

The second Embraer 190 delivery is scheduled for April, says CityFlyer commercial manager Luke Hayhoe.

"We will have four Embraer 190s by June," he says, adding that the final aircraft is scheduled for delivery in late summer.

Cityflyer has four RJs still in its fleet but will retire another RJ100 tomorrow. Its RJ fleet will then comprise only a single RJ100 and two RJ85s, and "they will be retired by June", says Hayhoe.

Source: Air Transport Intelligence news