Brazil’s Embraer to Deliver 170 Jets This Year

Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer announced that it delivered 37 aircraft in the commercial, executive, and defense and government aviation segments in the third quarter of last year.

Deliveries totaled 130 aircraft in 2006, including 98 commercial jet airplanes, 27 executive aircraft, and 5 defense and government aircraft.

For the latter, the company only discloses sales of aircraft for transportation of authorities and sales to state-owned air carriers.

Regarding the Arab world, since December 2005, the company delivered 14 Embraer 170 commercial jets to Saudi Arabian Airlines, out of an order for 15 units. Embraer also received orders for commercial aircraft from Jordan, Egypt and Lybia.

According to the company, 67 new orders were placed during the last quarter of 2006, increasing the company's order backlog by 11.3% to reach US$ 14.8 billion.

Embraer has a firm order backlog of 463 aircraft. This year, the company plans on delivering 165 to 170 aircraft.

Gol

Brazilian airline Gol is celebrating its sixth anniversary of operations.  The company, which popularized air transportation in Brazil and South America, is celebrating this anniversary with some of the best numbers in the history of Brazilian aviation. 

Over the last six years, Gol transported 55 million passengers; including five million first time flyers.

Gol's current fleet of 65 aircraft operates over 600 daily flights to 55 destinations, including seven international routes to five countries in South America. 

In December 2006, Gol had domestic and international Brazilian market shares of 37.1 percent and 13.3 percent, respectively.  The Company's average load factor in 2006 was 74%, the highest in the industry, and Gol has been the most punctual airline in Brazil for over 18 months.

The "Gol Effect" has been evident in Brazil's passenger transportation market over the last six years:  average domestic fares have been reduced by over 25% – providing low-cost air travel for more Brazilian consumers; average load factors on domestic flights are at their highest levels ever (above 70%); and the number of first-time flyers increases year after year.

Gol's international expansion is one of highlights of its sixth anniversary, as the Company is one of the fastest growing "international" airlines. 

In 2006 alone, Gol increased its operating capacity on South American international routes by over 150 percent.  In 2004, Argentina was the Company's first international destination; strong demand allowed Gol to expand its services to a total of three Argentinean cities: Buenos Aires, Cordoba and Rosario. 

Based on the success of these routes, the Company increased the number of international destinations: in 2005, Gol began flights to Bolivia and, in 2006, the Company started service to Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. 

In February of this year, Gol will begin operations to Peru and has plans to further increase it operations in Latin America with a new route to Mexico later this year.