By Tatiana Ivanova
National Airline Belavia has recently bought an Embraer-175 aircraft, which is the first to be produced specifically for the Belarusian aviation company. It is being leased from American Air Lease Corporation (ALC) and is preceded by six months of training for pilots, flight attendants and maintenance personnel — at foreign training centres.
The fourth-generation Embraer-175 meets modern requirements for regional air transport, and has been chosen to help develop the long-term strategy of the company to raise the frequency of flights on existing routes and to launch new routes. The new aircraft will be used for business destinations such as Baku, London, Moscow, Paris, Prague, Rome and St. Petersburg.
The Embraer-175 has a medium-range (between the larger Boeing 737 and the relatively small CRJ-100/200) offering 76 seats: 12 in business class and 64 economy. Its ‘2+2’ seat formation is comfortable while business class has more leg room and is separated from economy class by a rigid barrier.
The new aircraft is the 19th for Belavia, which is expecting delivery in early October. In 2013, it is planned to expand further and upgrade the airline’s fleet, which currently comprises six Boeing 737-500, five Boeing 737-300, four of the CRJ-100/200, one Embraer-175 and three of the Tu-154M.
Belavia, established in 1996, is the largest air carrier in Belarus, and is based at Minsk National Airport. It operates flights from Minsk, Gomel and Grodno to 42 destinations across 24 countries in Europe and Asia. Since 1997, it has been a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and, since 2010, has been a member of the European Regions Airline Association (ERAA). Belavia meets the highest international safety standards and, following an audit by the International Air Transport Association (IOSA — IATA Operational Safety Audit) in 2008, has been registered as an IOSA operator.
