Aurigny Air Services (Guernsey) has signed a firm contract with Embraer Commercial Aviation for one ERJ 195 jet. The transaction was announced today at a press briefing in Salzburg at the annual general meeting of the European Regions Airline Association. The firm order will be included in Embraer’s 2013 third quarter backlog. Delivery is scheduled in the first semester of 2014.

The E195 is the first jet aircraft to be added to the Aurigny Air Services fleet. The airline currently flies turboprops on six daily frequencies on its principal route between the London Gatwick Airport and Guernsey. With 122 slim seats in single-class layout, the E195 will enable the carrier to increase the number of daily flights to eight and offer much-needed additional capacity.

“The acquisition of the E195 is a major step forward for our company,” said Mark Darby, CEO of Aurigny Air Services. “The London Gatwick route is very important for us. We’ve been mandated by the State of Guernsey to increase capacity and upgrade the quality of our overall service so we decided to move up to a jet. The E195 was the natural choice.”

Image: Embraer.

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