The encyclopedia · Product & Design · Product decision · 1999–2004
Embraer bet US$750 million on a 70–120-seat jet family and reshaped regional aviation
After losing a 70-seat order to Bombardier, Embraer built a clean-sheet jet with mainline comfort and won the gap between regional and big airliners.
Embraer
the move
In February 1999 Embraer pre-launched two new regional jets, the ERJ-170 and ERJ-190, with 70 and 90 seats, backed by research among 46 regional airlines worldwide that showed demand for exactly those sizes. The company committed US$750 million and planned first deliveries for 2002 and 2004.
The decision was the product of a defeat: in 1997 Embraer won American Airlines' 50-seat order but lost the 70-seat one to Bombardier's CRJ-700. Embraer concluded the ERJ-145 could not carry the company, and in 1998–99 launched the clean-sheet E-Jet with a double-bubble fuselage and mainline 2+2 comfort — a bet on passenger comfort in the regional segment.
The bet worked. After first delivery to LOT Polish Airlines in 2004, Embraer delivered over 1,050 E-Jets, won large orders from JetBlue, Air Canada and US Airways, and rose to the top three of civil aviation after Airbus and Boeing.
why it works
- A clean-sheet design let Embraer match mainline comfort in a regional frame
- The 70–120-seat gap had no dominant incumbent
- Surveying 46 airlines grounded the gamble in measured demand
- The E-Jet won carriers that wanted comfort, not just minimum cost
what transfers
A lost order is data: if the segment you lost is structural, do not stretch the product you have — design a new one for the gap, and sell comfort where competitors sell minimum spec.
what came after
The E-Jet family became Embraer's commercial backbone, with over 1,000 aircraft flying for 65 airlines in 45 countries by 2014 and a second generation, the E-Jet E2, launched to defend the segment — proof that a clean-sheet bet in an ignored size class can outlast the incumbent.
references
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