An Embraer E170 was among the 94 commercial, defense and executive aircraft on display at the Bahrain International Air Show held January 21 to 23 at Sakhir Air Base in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Forty exhibitors welcomed delegates from 45 countries for the three-day event during which contracts for aircraft acquisitions valued in excess of US$ 1 billion were signed.

Representatives from Embraer’s European office led by Mr. José Luis Molina, Vice-President of Commercial Aviation, received visitors aboard the E170 which was painted with Gulf Air’s distinctive livery. The aircraft is configured with dual-class seating and features an audio and video-on- demand entertainment system at every seat.

Mr. Molina expressed his optimism for E-Jet-type capacity in the Middle East. “The Bahrain Air Show gives us an opportunity to introduce the right-sizing concept to airlines that are new to our segment. The E170’s reception has been tremendous. Having the airplane on display here gives prospective customers the ability to see the potential applications for E-Jets in the Gulf.”

L-R Mr. Mathieu Duquesnoy, Sales Director, Europe, Middle East & Africa, Embraer; Mr. José Luis Molina, Vice-President, Commercial Aviation, Europe, Middle East & Africa, Embraer; Mr. Abdulkarim Al-Awadhi, Director, Asset Management, Gulf Air.

Embraer has been steadily building its customer base in the Middle East. E-Jets are flying with carriers based in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Libya. Airlines from Bahrain and Oman will soon begin flying E-Jets from those countries to increase frequencies and connect secondary markets with hub airports.