South Africa’s Airlink to lease 10 E195-E2s from Azorra

Airlink, South Africa’s largest airline, will operate E195-E2 aircraft on a leasing basis, Azorra announced.

The Florida-based lessor will supply 10 jets from the largest-capacity variant of Embraer’s E2 family.

The E195-E2s will be supplied between the end of 2025 and 2027 and will be configured with 124 and 136 seats.

Airlink currently has an exclusive fleet of first-generation Embraer jets. There are 70 aircraft divided between 29 E190s, six E195s, four E175s, three E170s, eleven ERJ140s and 17 ERJ145s.

“The E195-E2 will bolster our business, helping us to be even more competitive on key routes and in doing so, continue providing the great value offering our customers are accustomed to,” said Villiers Engelbrecht, CEO of Airlink.

“This decision marks a significant milestone in our relationship with Airlink. The E195-E2 offers the perfect combination of increased capacity, efficiency and flexibility, helping Airlink expand its network while maintaining the high-frequency service its passengers value,” said John Evans, CEO of Azorra.

Expected E2 operator

Airlink’s choice of E2 jets was expected given the airline’s expansion in recent years, taking advantage of the financial problems of state-owned South African Airways.

The E195-E2 is already operating on the African continent with Air Peace, which has five aircraft in its fleet, the first of an order for 13 jets delivered in 2021.

Airlink hopes to leverage the E2’s increased range to launch routes to destinations in sub-Saharan Africa.

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