Embraer has confirmed that its deal with Indigo for up to 75 ERJ-135 Legacy jets has been quietly cancelled as a result of the start-up charter carrier's financial difficulties and after only two of the corporate jets had been delivered.
The Brazilian manufacturer's latest sales figures no longer include the 23 Legacy jets previously on backlog, plus 50 options, for Chicago-based Indigo. The two aircraft delivered in 2002 and earlier this year could be taken back unless Indigo and its majority owner Lunn partners can raise additional capital.
Cancellation of the order was a major factor in Embraer's recently revised delivery forecast for 2003, which has been cut from 132 to 110 aircraft. The company shipped 51 aircraft in the first six months of the year, including four corporate transports.
Embraer had been scheduled to deliver seven more Legacys to Indigo this year, but these aircraft have already been reconfigured back into ERJ-135 regional jets. The principal differences are the Legacy's extended forward wing fairing holding additional fuel (which Indigo's aircraft lacked), a reconfigured luggage compartment and uprated Rolls-Royce AE 3007AIP turbofans.
Indigo launched services in March from New York City's Teterboro and Chicago's Midway airports. But congressional action banning all scheduled charter services from Teterboro has thrown the carrier into financial difficulties.
Source: Flight International
