A cocky Brazilian lady
Last year I had the privilege to visit the embraer factory in Sao José dos Campos in Brazil. Embraer is the third aircraft manufacturer in the world. And I was impressed..! While I walked through the immense halls I saw how the aircraft took shape. And what struck me most was how clean the factory was. Shiny floors and clean working surfaces everywhere. In one of the halls I saw green plants placed in a straight line from front to back, an action of the staff. To make it more homely.
In November 2008 KLM Cityhopper took delivery of its first EMBRAER 190 (E190). Until then the fleet consisted with Fokker aircraft only. Currently KLM has 19 E190 aircraft in her fleet (Our Tweet says 17, which was correct yesterday, this morning we’ve added two new aircraft!). This summer another 3 will follow. Some facts and figures about KLM’s EMBRAER 190:
The E190 can carry 100 passengers and cruises at 850 kilometres per hour. It has a maximum range of 4.500 kilometres. The aircraft is 36.24 metres long, 10.55 metres high and has a wing span of 28.72 metres. The maximum take-off weight is 45.600 kilos. The aircraft is equipped with two General Electric CF34-10E5 motors. The E190 is also part of Régionals fleet, the regional airline of Air France. Régional has also the E170, E145 and E135 aircraft in its fleet. The E190 is a bigger version of E170. It has the same cockpit, a significantly larger wing, a horizontal tail surface with a greater wing span. The aircraft is equipped with an efficient airfoil with winglets which provides excellent handling qualities, resulting in a 9 % less fuel consumption and therefore less CO2 emissions.
The E190 has on either side of the aisle two seats. The absence of the middle seat largely contributes to the comfort of the passenger. It has a spacious cabin due to the high ceiling. Therefore it has more storage capacity for hand luggage. The E190 makes use of ACARS for communication with the ground staff.
KLM and Régional work closely together when it comes to maintenance, training and handling.
On the outside you can identify the EMBRAER 190 by the nose. The tip of the nose is slightly lower. The wheels are impressive and large for an aircraft of that size. The distance between the cockpit and the ground is smaller; therefore there is more contact with the ground staff.
I enjoyed my flights in the EMBRAER! Have you ever flown in one of KLM’s EMBRAERs? If so, to which destination did you fly? Did you like it as much as I did? Let us know!
Karin
Corporate Communications
