The Embraer 170 has been granted provisional type certification by the US Federal Aviation Administration. Final type approval is expected in February next year. The approval allows operators to begin crew training and route proving flights prior to putting the aircraft into revenue service. Brazilian provisional certification was granted last month.
Certification of the 170 has been delayed several times. The most recent three-month delay, to February, is related to Honeywell-developed fly-by-wire flight control system documentation. Past problems with Honeywell's Primus Epic avionics system have been solved.
Embraer says it is discussing a delivery schedule with North American 170 launch customer US Airways, after Alitalia Express rescheduled deliveries of its aircraft until definitive type certification is granted (Flight International, 18-24 November).
Embraer holds about 250 orders for the 170/190 family and about 310 purchase options.
Source: Flight International
