Embraer Bizjet Deliveries Hold Steady in Q1

Embraer delivered 11 executive jets in the first quarter, remaining on par with 2018 shipments. As in the first quarter of 2018, the Brazilian manufacturer handed over eight "light" jets (Phenoms) and three "large" jets (Legacys/Lineages) in the first three months of the year. Embraer, which delivered 91 executive jets last year, has projected shipments to fall between 90 and 110 executive jets this year.

While its business jet deliveries held steady in the quarter, Embraer's commercial aircraft shipments slid by three units to 11. Backlog, meanwhile, dipped slightly from $16.3 billion at the end of 2018 to $16 billion by the end of March.

The first quarter marked the 500^th delivery of the Phenom 300, a milestone reached in less than 10 years after the aircraft first entered service in 2009—and one of the few current business jets to reach that delivery level. One of the most-delivered aircraft over the last decade, the Phenom 300 is in operation in more than 30 countries and has accumulated more than 780,000 flight hours.

Also in the quarter, Embraer announced it had captured the first Phenom 300E and Praetor 600 business jet sales to Brazilian customers. Its delivery lineup is slated to expand this year with Embraer recently receiving Brazilian ANAC approval for the Praetor 600.