Embraer
The Embraer 145.
- I recently flew on a Brazilian-made Embraer 145, a small regional jet.
- The Embraer 145 is a nifty plane that genuinely impressed me.
- I'm no fan of narrow-bodies, but the Embraer 145 reminded me that single aisles can be lots of fun.
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It's easy to see the entire commercial aviation industry through the dual lens of Boeing and Airbus - understandable as the US giant and the European mega-consortium even divide about 90% of the current market for jet aircraft.
However, there are two other plane makers of note on the planet: Canada's Bombardier and Brazil's Embraer.
Mind you, both are in the process of being absorbed by the Boeing-Airbus duopoly. Airbus has effectively taken over the troubled Bombardier CSeries, rechristening it the A220. Meanwhile, Boeing has bought into Embraer big-time with a nearly $4-billion deal that's slated to close this year.
Like most travelers, I hate flying on larger narrow-body jets for the most part. But I make an exception for small, single-aisle jets, which I very much dig. The Boeing 717, for example.
Recently, I made a quick trip to my hometown, Huntington, West Virginia. This a small city served by a small regional airport. For what seems like decades, I've flown in and out of HTS on turboprop regional planes. But on my last visit, I discovered that jet service is back.
And the jet I wound up riding, the Embraer 145, was a winner. Read on to find out why:
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