Today marks the landing of the first commercial flight of the Embraer E195-E2 at London City Airport, operated by Helvetic Airways on behalf of Swiss International Air Lines. This is now the largest jet from London City Airport.
With a length of 41.5 metres and a total of 134 seats, the E195-E2 is now the largest aircraft flying from London City Airport. The E195-E2 also has the lowest fuel consumption per seat of all aircraft operating at London City.
Tobias Pogorevc, CEO of Helvetic Airways said: “Due to its steep approach, London City Airport places high demands on both the aircraft and the specially trained cockpit crews.
“Helvetic Airways has both, and we are proud to be the first airline to bring the larger E195-E2 to London City Airport following its premiere with the Embraer E190-E2 in 2021.
“This makes us the only wet-lease operator in the world to land at London City with three different Embraer aircraft, allowing us to offer our wet-lease customers the greatest possible flexibility.”
The flight, which was operated by Helvetic Airways on behalf of Swiss International Air Lines on a wet-lease basis, took off from Zurich at 11.30 a.m. and landed at London City Airport shortly after midday.
Alison FitzGerald, CEO of London City Airport, said: “We’re delighted to welcome the first commercial flight of the E195-E2 aircraft to London City, which demonstrates our commitment to working with our airlines and manufacturers to introduce cleaner, quieter, new generation aircraft to the airport.
“The E195-E2 opens up a range of new and exciting destinations for our passengers, and by using quieter and cleaner aircraft this enables us to grow and meet our passenger cap without increasing the number of flight movements.”
Marie-Louise Philippe, Embraer Commercial Aviation said: “London City, where 75% of flights are on Embraer aircraft, is a special place for us. It’s great to celebrate another milestone in the E2 story with our partners from Helvetic Airways and London City.
“Offering 30% lower CO2 emissions per seat and a 63% smaller noise footprint compared to the previous generation aircraft, the E195-E2 is the largest, most efficient, and most sustainable aircraft certified for LCY.”
Philippe added, “Embraer has developed the world’s first automatic takeoff system for aircraft called E2TS – Embraer Enhanced Takeoff System. When certified, E2TS will increase the range of the E195-E2, specifically from LCY, from 3200 km to 4000 km.
Bringing new destinations such as Istanbul, Gran Canaria, Casablanca, Athens, and Cairo and within range of London City for the first time.”
