Embraer has secured US and European approval for a range extension on its Legacy 450 business jet, and is preparing to deliver the first such model before the end of July. The announcement comes on the back of an uptick in business jet deliveries for the Brazilian airframer in the first half of 2016.
Following minor modifications to the wing to accommodate extra fuel, and updates to aircraft’s software, the superlight twin can now fly up to 2,900nm (5,370km) – 325nm further than the original version that entered service in late 2015.
Embraer introduced the enhancement last November in an effort to boost the Legacy 450’s appeal in the competitive superlight and midsize sectors, where it is pitched against established players including the Bombardier Learjet 75 and Cessna’s Citation XLS+ and Latitude, which have ranges of 2,040nm, 2,100nm and 2,900nm, respectively.
The fly-by-wire Legacy 450 will now be able to connect many more city pairs non-stop when it enters service as the baseline model, Embraer says. These include San Francisco to Hawaii and New York to Los Angeles.
Embraer
A free retrofit will be offered to current Legacy 450 owners. Flight Fleets Analyzer records an in-service total of three aircraft in the USA and Belgium, all of which were delivered late last year. No Legacy 450s have been shipped in 2016, it reveals – indicating that new owners have chosen to wait for the new model.
The delivery picture for the rest of Embraer’s business jet line-up was more positive during the first half of 2016. The company shipped 49 aircraft, up from 45 for the same period last year.
Deliveries for the second quarter of 2016 were slightly lower than for the first, however. Between April and June, Embraer handed over 26 aircraft: 15 Phenom 300s, eight Phenom 100Es and three Legacy 500s. This compares with 33 light and large-cabin jets during the first three months, including 20 Phenom 300s, six Phenom 100Es, three each of the Legacy 500 and Legacy 650, plus a Lineage 1000E.
Embraer ended the first half of 2016 with a $21.6 billion backlog. This was boosted by a $260 million order in May from the Mexican business aviation services company Across, for 23 Legacy 500s and Phenom 100E/300s.
Source: Flight International
