Embraer ERJ family

The Embraer ERJ family (for Embraer Regional Jet) are regional jets designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace company Embraer. The family includes the ERJ 135 (37 passengers), ERJ 140 (44 passengers), and ERJ 145 (50 passengers), as well as the Legacy 600 business jet and the R-99 family of military aircraft.

Development of the ERJ 145 was launched in 1989. Its early design took the form of a turbofan-powered stretch of the existing turboprop-powered EMB 120 Brasilia regional aircraft. After the project was temporarily suspended in 1990, work on a revised configuration was undertaken during the early 1990s. While retaining the three-abreast seating of the Brasilia, the twinjet featured a new swept wing and is powered by two rear-fuselage-mounted Rolls-Royce AE 3007 turbofans for a range up to . By the time of its maiden flight on 11 August 1995, Embraer had garnered 18 firm orders, 16 options and 127 letters of intent for the type. On 10 December 1996, the ERJ 145 received its type certificate; it entered revenue service with ExpressJet Airlines on 6 April 1997.

Embraer prioritised the rapid expansion of the family, leading to the introduction of the shortened ERJ 135 and ERJ 140 in 1999. The ERJ series' primary competition came from the similarly sized Bombardier CRJ100/200 regional jets. In December 2002, Embraer entered a partnership with the Chinese aerospace manufacturer Harbin Aircraft Industry Group to jointly produce the ERJ 145 in Harbin, China; this production line was shuttered in 2016 after producing 41 aircraft. Overall production of the type was terminated in 2020, by which point 1,231 aircraft were built. By this point, the ERJ family had been eclipsed by the newer and more advanced E-Jet family.

Development

Background and early design

The ERJ 145 was designed for a perceived new market for regional jet aircraft, where the increased speed, comfort and passenger appeal would outweigh the inherent fuel economy of the turboprop aircraft which were in service and in development.

thumb|The original EMB 145 Amazon design with a straight wing and overwing engines

The 45–48 seat EMB 145, nicknamed Amazon, was launched at the Paris Air Show in 1989 as an stretch of the EMB 120 Brasilia developed for US$150 million plus $50 million for training and marketing, one third the cost of the cancelled Short Brothers FJX project.

Keeping 75% of the Brasilia parts and systems, the EMB 145 Amazon aimed for a 1991 first flight.

Engine selection

thumb|AE3007 Turbofan

In early 1990, no engine supplier willing to share the risk of the $250 million development was yet selected. The Allison GMA3007 (later renamed the Rolls-Royce AE 3007) was selected in March 1990, with a maximum 40 kN (7,100 lbf) take-off thrust and growth capability to , first flight was then due in September 1991. By May, it had 296 commitments from 19 operators, and was seeking external finance. In June, maiden flight was expected by the end of 1990 before mid-1993 deliveries for $11.5 million each, cabin pressurisation was increased to from the Brasilia .

Following the engine selection, design was revised: length decreased from , span increased from , aspect ratio to 9.3 from 9.2.

In November 1990, a major reduction in Brazilian government spending, which held 61% of its voting share, resulted in Embraer laying off 32% of its 12,800 employees and suspending development of the EMB 145 for six months.

Revised design

thumb|Revised design with swept wing and underwing engines

In March 1991, a revised configuration started wind tunnel testing: the quarter chord wing sweep increased to 22.3° with underslung engines for lower aerodynamic drag. This reduced the span by almost , reducing its aspect ratio from 9.3 to 8.4 and wing area from . The semi-monocoque wing has two main and one auxiliary spar and holds of fuel, it has double-slotted fowler flaps and spoilers. To accommodate the underwing engines, the landing gear is longer, allowing using jetways, and the fuselage was lengthened from .

During June 1991, the Brazilian Government loaned $600 million to Embraer and in July the programme was re-evaluated while tooling was 80% complete.

Definitive design

thumb|ERJ 145 planform view

thumb|Three-abreast cabin

After re-evaluation late in 1991, the layout was again revised with two rear-fuselage-mounted engines, and a Mach 0.8 cruise speed would be tested in the wind tunnel. In December 1994, Embraer was privatised for 80% to Brazilian and US investors while 20% was kept by the Brazilian Government.

The estimated $300 million development cost is divided between Embraer for 34%, risksharing partners for 33% (including Belgium's SONACA supplying centre and rear fuselage sections, doors, engine pylons and wing leading-edges), long-term loans from Brazilian development-funding institutions for % and participating suppliers for 10%. Its $15 million price was $4 million lower than the CRJ.

The Flight Test campaign took four aircraft: S/N 801, PT-ZJA, S/N 001, PT-ZJB, S/N 002, PT-ZJC and S/N 003, PT-ZJD. Only S/N 003 was fitted with passenger seats and had no FTI (flight test instrumentation) and was used for functional and reliability tests.

In July 1996, its certification was targeted for October, and the unit cost was then forecast to be US$15 million. Flight tests allowed to increase its cruise speed to Mach 0.78 from 0.74, and showed fuel economy was 7% better than predicted. Before the Summer 1996 Farnborough Airshow, Embraer held 62 firm orders and 218 options. Continental Express then purchased 25 EMB145s and took 175 options. More than 50 seats would need a wider fuselage for four-abreast seating, an enlarged wing and a more powerful turbofan.

On 10 December 1996, type certification was issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), clearing the type for operational use in North America.

Embraer delivered 892 units of all variants through 2006, and predicted that another 102 units would be delivered in the 2007–2016 time period.

Production in China

During December 2002, Embraer entered a partnership with the Chinese aerospace manufacturer Harbin Aircraft Industry Group, resulting in the creation of Harbin Embraer Aircraft Industry, a joint venture company, to locally produce the ERJ 145 in Harbin for the Chinese market. The assembly line was sized to produce a maximum of 24 aircraft per year, assembling complete knock down kits prepared by Embraer at its facilities overseas.

In April 2009, it was announced that Hainan Airlines had halved its original order for 50 ERJ145s from the joint venture. By April 2011, 41 aircraft had reportedly been produced in China, considerably less than the line's capacity. By this time, the company was undertaking changes to facilitate the local production of the similar Embraer Legacy 650 business jet as well. In March 2016, the final delivery of aircraft produced by the joint venture took place. Two months later, the discontinuation of the local assembly initiative was announced; it was reported that in excess of 40 ERJ 145 and five Legacy 650s has been completed by this point.

Shortened versions

thumb|The ERJ 145 with the ERJ 135 at Farnborough in July 2000

Embraer has introduced two shortened versions of the ERJ145. All three aircraft share the same crew type rating, allowing pilots to fly any of the three aircraft without the need for further training.

The ERJ 140 is shorter, seating 44 passengers, and has 96% parts commonality with the ERJ145. The only significant changes are a shorter fuselage, a slightly derated engine and an increased range. The ERJ140 was designed with fewer seats in order to meet the needs of some major United States airlines, which have an agreement with the pilots' union to limit the number of 50-seat aircraft that can be flown by their affiliates. At launch, Embraer estimated the cost of an ERJ140 to be approximately US$15.2 million. The estimated cost of development of the ERJ140 was US$45 million.

The ERJ 135 is shorter, seating 37 passengers, and has 95% parts commonality with the ERJ145. The first ERJ 135 entered service in 1999.

Design

The Embraer ERJ family is a series of twin-engine regional jets. The ERJ family retains a relatively high level of commonality with the Embraer Legacy 600 business jet; the principal difference being the addition of winglets and additional fuel tanks as standard on the latter. This provides an electronic flight instrument system (EFIS) that comprises five monitors; from left to right, these consists of a Primary Flight Display (PFD), Multi-Function Display (MFD), Engine Indication and Crew Alerting System (EICAS), Multi-Function Display (MFD) (Co-pilot) and Primary Flight Display (PFD) (Co-pilot). While these are CRT displays as standard, they can be upgraded to LCD counterparts, which are lighter and have additional functionality.

In a typical commuter/airliner configuration, the ERJ 145 can accommodate up to 60 seats, although many operators would have fewer seats than this on their selected configuration. Embraer has offered a premium cabin configuration, which seats between 16 and 28 passengers in a more comfortable and spacious arrangement. The cabin can accommodate various interiors, these being customisable to fulfil each customer's own requirements. Numerous aftermarket companies have also offered their own conversions of ERJ family aircraft, often involving various levels of interior refurbishment, such as the installation of an expanded galley, redesigned lavatories, seat track relocation, at-seat power provision, Wi-Fi, alternative ceilings, LED lighting upgrades, and various storage options.

Operational history

thumb|ERJ 145 operated for United Express by ExpressJet Airlines at [[Dulles International Airport in January 2013]]

In December 1996, the first delivery of the ERJ 145 was made to ExpressJet Airlines (then the regional division of Continental Airlines flying as Continental Express). As a newly established company, ExpressJet chose the ERJ 145 with which to launch its operations; this was achieved in April 1997, the same month that Embraer completed deliveries to the operator.

The ERJ 145 quickly entered service with various other operators throughout the Americas, being particularly popular on high-demand regional routes. However, the type proved to be less successful in the European market allegedly on account of logistical difficulties. Nonetheless, several European operators did emerge; LOT Polish Airlines operated as many as 14 ERJ145s, while British Regional Airlines also flew the type on behalf of the national flag carrier British Airways.

During the early 2000s, various governments opted to procure the ERJ 145 as dedicated transports for high-ranking officials, amongst some other purposes.

During September 1999, the slightly smaller ERJ140 was introduced; it performing its first flight on 27 June 2000, and entering commercial service in July 2001.

Variants

thumb|The [[Legacy 600 business jet derivative adds a fuel tank fairing forward of the wing and winglets.]]

Civilian models

ERJ 135ER – Extended Range, although this is the baseline 135 model. Simple shrink of the ERJ145, seating thirteen fewer passengers, for a total of 37 passengers.
ERJ 135LR – Long Range, increased fuel capacity and upgraded engines. Launch customer: Belgium Air Component.
ERJ 140ER – Extended Range, although this is the baseline 140 model. Simple shrink of the ERJ145, seating six fewer passengers for a total of 44 passengers.
ERJ 140LR – Long Range (increased fuel capacity (5,187 kg) and upgraded engines. Launch customer: American Eagle (Envoy).
ERJ 145EU – Model optimized for the European market. Same fuel capacity as 145LR (4,174 kg) but a lower 19,990 kg
ERJ 145ER – Extended Range, although this is the baseline 145 model with 50 seats. Launch customer: ExpressJet Airlines
ERJ 145EP – Same fuel capacity as 145ER (4,174 kg) but an increased MTOW 20,990 kg. Launch customer: Flybmi.
ERJ 145LI – Built in China – joint venture with Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation
ERJ 145LR – Long Range – increased fuel capacity (5,187 kg) and upgraded engines.
ERJ 145LU – Same fuel capacity as 145LR (5,187 kg) but an increased MTOW 21,990 kg. Launch customer: Luxair.
ERJ 145MP – Updated version of the 145ER with increased MTOW, increased empty weight, and increased payload with same fuel capacity of the 145ER. Range also slightly increased by 30nm.
ERJ 145XR – Extra-long Range, numerous aerodynamic improvements, including winglets, strakes, etc. for lower cruise-configuration drag; an aft ventral fuel tank in addition to the two main larger capacity wing tanks (same tanks as in the LR models); increased weight capacity; increased cruise from .78 mach to .80 mach. Launch customer: ExpressJet Airlines.
Legacy 600 (EMB 135BJ) – Business jet variant based on the ERJ 135.
Legacy 650 (EMB 135BJ) – Business jet variant based on the Legacy 600 with increased range.

The physical engines are the same (Rolls-Royce AE 3007), however, the FADEC (Full Authority Digital Engine/Electronic Control) logic is what differs between the various models in regards to total thrust capability.

The extended range version, the ERJ 145ER, has Rolls-Royce AE 3007A engines rated at 31.3 kN (7,036 lb) thrust, with the option of more powerful AE 3007A1 engines. A, A1, A1P models are mechanically identical but differ in thrust due to variations in FADEC software. The A1E engine, however, has not only new software, but significantly upgraded mechanical components.

The long-range ERJ 145LR aircraft is equipped with Rolls-Royce AE 3007A1 engines which provide 15% more power. The engines are flat rated at 33.1 kN (7,440 lb) thrust to provide improved climb characteristics and improved cruise performance in high ambient temperatures.

The extra-long-range ERJ 145XR aircraft is equipped with Rolls-Royce AE 3007A1E engines. The high performance engines provide lower specific fuel consumption (SFC) and improved performance in hot and high conditions. The engines also yield a higher altitude for one-engine-inoperable conditions."

Despite the multiple variants, pilots need only one type rating to fly any variant of the ERJ aircraft. Companies like American Eagle utilizes this benefit with its mixed fleet of ERJ 135ER/LR and ERJ145EP/LR/XR. Shared type-ratings allow operators to utilize a single pilot pool for any ERJ aircraft.

Military models

C-99A – Transport model
EMB 145SA (E-99A / E-99M) – Airborne Early Warning model
EMB 145RS (R-99B) – Remote sensing model
EMB 145MP/ASW (P-99) – Maritime patrol model
EMB 145H (Hellenic Air Force) – Airborne Early Warning model
EMB 145SM (Indian Air Force) – Airborne Early Warning model
B.LL.2 (Royal Thai Navy) – () designation for the ERJ 135LR.

Operators

Civilian operators

As of May 2025, the civilian operators with ten or more ERJs are:

Piedmont Airlines: 61 (7 parked)
CommuteAir: 53 (1 parked)
JSX: 79 (31 parked)
Airlink: 27
Contour Airlines: 23 (4 parked)
Loganair: 11 (1 parked)
TAR Aerolíneas: 11 (8 parked)

Military operators

File:EGVA - Embraer 145SA - Hellenic Air Force - 729 (30186004888).jpg|Erieye variant (R-99A) of the Hellenic Air Force with an AESA antenna on top for AEW&C

File:Embraer R-99 6750 (9505743118).jpg|Embraer R-99B variant of the Força Aérea Brasileira with a synthetic aperture radar on the side

File:EMB-145 FAM 3.jpg|EMB 145 MPA maritime patrol version of the Fuerza Aérea Mexicana, without the R-99B side radar

</gallery>

Accidents and incidents

The ERJ 135/140/145 has been involved in 26 aviation accidents and incidents, including 11 hull losses, which resulted in zero fatalities.

{| class="wikitable sortable"

|+ Hull loss accidents

| 28 Dec 1998 || ERJ 145 || Rio Sul Serviços Aéreos Regionais || Curitiba, Brazil (Afonso Pena International Airport) || Excessive descent rate upon landing, causing the fuselage to crack near the tail and drag along the runway.

| 18 Jan 2003 || ERJ 135 || American Eagle Airlines || Columbus, Ohio, United States (John Glenn Columbus International Airport) || Collided with hangar doors during an engine run-up test.

| 7 Dec 2009 || ERJ 135 || SA Airlink || George, South Africa (George Airport) || When landing in wet weather, the aircraft slid past the aerodrome's fence; the landing gear tyres had evidence of aquaplaning.

| 5 May 2010 || ERJ 145 || SATENA || Mitú, Colombia (Fabio Alberto León Bentley Airport) ||

| 25 Aug 2010 || ERJ 145 || Passaredo Linhas Aéreas || Vitória da Conquista, Brazil (Glauber Rocha Airport) || Crash-landed on approach: touched-down short of the runway and stopped away from the runway.

| 28 Apr 2011 || ERJ 145 || Dniproavia || Moscow, Russia (Sheremetyevo International Airport) ||Skidded off runway after attempted ground loop to slow down. Brake failure was suspected.

| 4 Sep 2011 || ERJ 145 || Trans States Airlines for United Express || Ottawa, Canada (Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport) || Slid off the runway upon landing.

| 4 Mar 2019 || ERJ 145 || CommuteAir for United Express || Presque Isle, Maine, United States (Presque Isle International Airport) || United Express Flight 4933 – pilots misidentified the runway in snow and did not abort the approach due to confirmation bias.

| 11 Nov 2019 || ERJ 145 || Envoy Air for American Eagle || Chicago, Illinois, United States (O'Hare International Airport) || Slid off the runway upon landing in icy conditions.

|17 Nov 2025 ||ERJ 145 ||AirJet || Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kolwezi Airport) || Airjet Angola Flight 100 – crashed while attempting to land; aircraft consumed by fire.

Specifications

thumb|Line drawings of ERJ 135 and 145

{| class=wikitable style="text-align: center;"

! Variant

! ERJ 135LR

! ERJ 140LR

! ERJ 145XR

! Cockpit crew

| colspan=3 | Two

! Seating

| 37

| 44

| 50

! Length

! Wing span

| colspan=3 |

! Wing

| colspan=3 | area, aspect ratio 7.9, supercritical airfoil

! Height

| colspan=3 |

! MTOW

! BOW

! Max payload

! Fuel capacity

| colspan=2 |

! Engines (2x)

| colspan=2 | AE 3007-A1/3

| AE 3007-A1E

! Takeoff Thrust

| colspan=2 | 33.71 kN (7,580 lbf)

| 39.67 kN (8,917 lbf)

! Maximum cruise

| colspan=2 |

! Service ceiling

| colspan=3 |