ECC LEASES FOUR ERJ 135 JETS TO SOUTH AFRICAN AIRLINK
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Aircraft will replace turboprops and support 2010 FIFA World Cup regional travel
São José dos Campos, January 11, 2010 – ECC Leasing Company Limited, a wholly owned
subsidiary of Embraer, has leased four ERJ 135 pre-owned jets to South African Airlink. These
aircraft – serial numbers 551, 620, 720 and 725 – will replace some of the airline’s turboprops
and are scheduled to be delivered by the end of this month, making an important contribution to
the transportation needs of the 2010 FIFA World Cup (www.fifa.com/worldcup).
“It is significant to Embraer that Airlink has chosen to source additional ERJ 135s from
ECC, since this reaffirms the clear value that we, as the manufacturer, bring to the highly
competitive pre-owned market. The ERJ 135 is a perfect fit for the airline’s network, and will
certainly play a key role in the company’s future growth,” said Mark Dunnachie, Managing
Director ECC Leasing.
South African Airlink’s ERJ 135 jets are configured in a 37-seat layout. They will be based in
Johannesburg, South Africa, and deployed on regional routes that are expected to be
increasingly busy, as the soccer World Cup event gets underway in June.
“We are very pleased to increase our fleet of ERJ 135 jets to meet the growing demand of our
domestic and intra-regional markets,” said Rodger Foster, CEO of South African Airlink. “These
regional jets will replace our oldest turboprops, improving reliability and quality of service.
Travel time will be reduced, while providing a more comfortable cabin for our passengers. This is
an opportune time for introducing larger and more efficient aircraft. Furthermore, we see clear
benefits in dealing directly with the manufacturer, Embraer, through ECC.”
About South African Airlink
Privately owned South African Airlink was restyled in 1995, but its history can be traced back
to the formation of Midlands Aviation in 1967. The airline has developed into South Africa’s
first feeder network, specifically aimed at linking smaller towns with regional centers and
hubs throughout the country. In 1997, South African Airlink joined South African Airways
and South African Express in a powerful strategic alliance that led to the establishment of the
leading aviation network in Africa.
South Africa Airlink serves an almost exclusively network of smaller community
destinations, which is a component of a greater composite branded network system where
South African Airways is the major part. The purpose of the greater branded network is that
passengers can travel seamlessly between points within the network, via the major hubs, with
interconnecting flights on more than one airline.
The company operates over 3,500 flights per month, carrying nearly 900,000 passengers to
more than 25 destinations in Southern Africa during the year ended August 31, 2009. It is the
only scheduled airline providing service to many of the smaller destinations in the Southern
African region. Included in Airlink’s regional destination portfolio are such key business
centers as Ndola and Lusaka (Zambia), Harare and Bulawayo (Zimbabwe), Antananarivo
(Madagascar), Manzini (Swaziland), Maputo and Beira (Mozambique), and Maseru (Lesotho).
About ECC Leasing Company Limited
Embraer’s wholly owned subsidiary, ECC Leasing Company Limited, was incorporated in
Dublin, Ireland, in September 2002, to manage and remarket Embraer’s pre-owned aircraft
portfolio. To date, ECC has handled a total of 79 aircraft, 27 of which are under operating
lease and 37 sold to airlines, corporations and government agencies in North and South
America, Europe, and Asia. The company deals with Embraer aircraft that may be acquired
through trade-ins, and provides remarketing services for third parties, in connection with its
sales campaigns. For more information, visit www.ECCLeasing.com.
Source: EMBRAER
