Embraer’s Phenom 100 Jet Will Allow Avantair To Expand
Product OfferingS
Avantair has placed an order for 20 Phenom 100 executive
jets from Embraer. Avantair’s firm contract has an order
value of $57 million at list price in January 2005 economic
conditions. The Phenom 100 is expected to enter service in mid-2008
and Avantair is scheduled to take delivery of its first aircraft in
June 2009.
“The Phenom 100 is a perfect addition to our fleet,”
stated Matt Doyle, Avantair Vice President of Sales. “It
gives us an advantage in the marketplace by allowing us to offer
our existing and potential owners the best in the Very Light Jets
category in both fuel efficiency and cabin comfort.”
The addition of Embraer’s Phenom 100 to Avantair’s
current fleet will give them the opportunity to offer a wider
variety of aircraft and fractional share programs options. Avantair
also offers custom programs and travel solutions that provide the
highest quality of customer service.
“As one the largest fractional ownership companies in the
world, Avantair has placed tremendous faith and trust in
Embraer’s products,” said Luis Carlos Affonso, Embraer
Executive Vice-President, Executive Jets. “We are immensely
grateful to Avantair and we are confident that the Phenom 100 will
offer the finest in performance, reliability, efficiency and
premium comfort that has become synonymous with the Avantair
name.”
Embraer’s Phenom 100 is the most suitable choice for
ownership management programs and air taxi operations in that it is
designed for high utilization and high availability. It is designed
for at least 35,000 cycles of operation. Although business jets
typically operate around 500 hours per year, the Phenom jets’
design philosophy of high availability and reliability is the same
as that of the ERJ 145 and EMBRAER 170/190 family of commercial
jets that operate well over 2,000 hours per year.
The Phenom 100 is priced at US$2.85 million in January 2005
economic conditions for FAA certification and is expected to enter
service in mid-2008.
On October 2, 2006, Avantair announced that it had signed a
definitive agreement to be acquired by publicly-traded Ardent
Acquisition Corp. Following consummation of the acquisition,
Avantair’s current management team will remain in place,
joined by Barry Gordon, the current Chief Executive Officer of
Ardent, who will become non-executive Chairman of the Board. In
addition, it is intended that, upon consummation of the
acquisition, Ardent will change its name to “Avantair”
and will apply for a NASDAQ listing. The transaction is expected to
close in the first quarter 2007.