Embraer Bullish on E-Jet Airliner Prospects in Asia-Pacific

Embraer Commercial Aviation’s E-Jets are making inroads into the Asia-Pacific market, with five customers already, and the company is eyeing more growth for its family of 70- to 124-seat narrowbodies, division president Arjan Meijer said Tuesday at the 2026 Singapore Airshow. He said the twinjets are ideal replacements for airlines looking to upgrade from turboprops—especially the E2 versions that offer better performance than the original E175, E190, and E195 models.

Asia-Pacific accounts for about one-third of Embraer’s latest 20-year delivery forecast for airliners with up to 150 seats. Worldwide, the company predicts shipments of 10,500 such aircraft from 2025 to 2044, with China taking 1,700 and another 1,690 destined for the rest of the region. India alone could absorb 500 regional airliners in the next 20 years, according to Meijer. 

Current E-Jet operators in the region include Virgin Australia (E190-E2), Hunnu (E195-E2), and Scoot (E190-E2). One of Mongolian airline Hunnu’s two Embraer E2 jets is on display this week at the Singapore show static park.

All Nippon Airways placed a firm order for 15 E190-E2s and options for five more a year ago, with deliveries set for 2028. That will mark the first time a Japanese carrier will operate the E2 series.

Another Asia-Pacific airline in the Embraer customer pipeline is QantasLink, which will take up to 14 refurbished, pre-owned E190s to replace its aging fleet of Fokker 100s. Deliveries of the first three of these aircraft are expected by year-end.

Overall, the commercial aviation division is doing quite well. Last year, the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer delivered 78 new-production E-Jets, up 7% from 2024. The company will provide delivery estimates for 2026 on March 6, when it will release its full-year 2025 financial results.

Embraer achieved a 2.8:1 book-to-bill in 2025, causing backlog to soar to $14.5 billion. That includes firm orders for 221 airliners and options for another 208.