Airlines across the world are placing multibillion-dollar orders to replace aging regional fleets with newer, more fuel-efficient aircraft. The Embraer E2 family has passed 500 cumulative orders. The Airbus A220 has surpassed 1,000 firm orders after AirAsia placed the largest single A220 commitment in the program’s history in May 2026. In 2025 alone, the E2 outsold the A220 three-to-one in net new orders, and Embraer is targeting 80-85 commercial deliveries in 2026 against a record backlog. Embraer delivered 30 commercial aircraft in the first half of 2026, comprising 16 E175s, five E190-E2s, and nine E195-E2s.

The orders are coming from every region and every type of operator. US legacy carriers are adding E175s under scope clause restrictions. European flag carriers are replacing first-generation E-Jets and aging A319s with E195-E2s. Southeast Asian low-cost carriers are using the A220 to open smaller markets that A320s cannot serve profitably. South American carriers are building regional connectivity with the E2 across domestic networks. Japanese carriers are ordering the E190-E2 for domestic routes that larger narrowbodies cannot cover efficiently. The common thread across all seven orders on this list is the same: airlines need aircraft smaller than the A320neo and 737 MAX that can serve thinner routes at lower operating costs, and both Embraer and Airbus are trying to deliver them in volume.

American Airlines

90 Embraer E175s

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American Airlines included 90 Embraer E175s in a 260-aircraft order that also covered A321neo and 737 MAX variants. The E175s will be operated by American’s regional partners, including PSA Airlines, Envoy Air, and Piedmont Airlines, on routes feeding traffic into American’s hubs at Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL).

The E175 remains the only regional jet that fits within US pilot union scope clause restrictions, which cap regional aircraft at 76 seats and 86,000 lb (39,008 kg) maximum takeoff weight. Embraer’s E175-E2, the next-generation replacement, exceeds those weight limits and cannot enter US regional service until the scope clauses are renegotiated. The order replaces aging CRJ-200s and CRJ-700s that are approaching the end of their economic lives across American’s regional network.

Republic Airways, which also operates E175s for American and Delta, became the world’s largest E-Jet operator in November 2025 after absorbing Mesa Air Group, underscoring how dominant the E175 has become in the US regional market.

AirAsia

150 Airbus A220-300s

Credit: Simple Flying

AirAsia placed a firm order for 150 Airbus A220-300s on May 6, 2026, at the Airbus facility in Mirabel, Quebec. The deal is valued at approximately $19 billion at list prices and is the largest single firm order ever placed for the A220. Deliveries begin in 2028, and the aircraft will serve destinations across Southeast Asia and the broader Asia-Pacific region.

AirAsia will be the launch customer for a new 160-seat all-economy configuration, made possible by adding an extra overwing exit on each side of the aircraft. The A220s will handle shorter routes and thinner markets that AirAsia’s A320s cannot serve profitably, freeing up the larger narrowbodies for medium-haul services and its A330s for long-haul operations to Europe, Australia, and North America.

AirAsia founder Tony Fernandes said at the announcement that if Airbus builds the proposed A220-500 stretch variant, AirAsia will order another 150. The order pushed the A220 program past the 1,000 firm order milestone and represented a significant win for Airbus over Embraer, which had also been competing for the contract alongside China’s COMAC C919.

Scandinavian Airlines

45 Embraer E195-E2s + 10 options

Credit: SAS

Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) signed an agreement in July 2025 for 45 E195-E2s with purchase rights for 10 additional aircraft. Deliveries are expected to begin in late 2027 and continue over approximately four years. SAS is replacing its aging fleet of CRJ-900s and A319s with the E195-E2, which offers approximately 30% lower fuel burn per seat than the aircraft it replaces.

The E195-E2 will operate intra-Scandinavian routes connecting Stockholm Arlanda (ARN), Copenhagen (CPH), and Oslo Gardermoen (OSL) to secondary cities across Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland, as well as short-haul European routes where a full-size A320neo would be too large for the demand. SAS emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2024 under new ownership by a consortium including Air France-KLM, and the E195-E2 order is the centerpiece of its post-restructuring fleet renewal.

The airline moved from Star Alliance to SkyTeam in September 2024 as part of the ownership change, and the new fleet will serve an increasingly integrated Scandinavian network within the SkyTeam partnership.

Finnair

18 Embraer E195-E2s

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Finnair selected the E195-E2 in March 2026 in what the airline described as its largest fleet investment in over two decades. The 18 aircraft will replace aging E190s and A319s on Finnair’s European and domestic Finnish network. CEO Turkka Kuusisto cited a 30% reduction in CO2 emissions per passenger compared to the aircraft being replaced, describing the E195-E2 as “a highly versatile aircraft and one of the quietest on the market.”

Finnair chose Embraer over Airbus, a decision that drew attention because the airline operates A350s and A321s on its long-haul and medium-haul routes and could have selected the A220 for fleet commonality. The E195-E2’s lower list price, approximately $22 million less than the A220-300, and its efficiency on shorter European sectors were cited as factors in the selection.

Deliveries are expected between 2026 and 2030. Finnair also plans to acquire up to 12 used A320 or A321 aircraft from the secondary market to cover medium-haul capacity needs during the transition period.

LATAM Airlines

24 firm + 50 options Embraer E195-E2s

Credit: Embraer

LATAM Airlines Group announced an order for 24 firm E195-E2s with 50 options in September 2025, valued at $2.1 billion for the firm aircraft alone. Deliveries begin in the second half of 2026, initially for LATAM Airlines Brazil with potential deployment to other LATAM subsidiaries across South America including operations in Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.

The E195-E2 will connect secondary Brazilian cities to LATAM’s hubs at São Paulo Guarulhos (GRU) and other major airports, building regional connectivity on routes where the airline’s A320 family aircraft are too large to operate economically. LATAM evaluated both the A220 and the E195-E2 before selecting Embraer, a decision influenced by the E195-E2’s lower acquisition cost and Embraer’s Brazilian manufacturing base, which provides supply chain proximity and potential industrial partnership benefits.

LATAM’s existing fleet is dominated by Airbus narrowbodies, making the Embraer selection a deliberate choice to add a smaller complementary type rather than stay within the Airbus family for a role that the A220 could also have filled.

All Nippon Airlines

15 Embraer E190-E2s + 5 options

Credit: Embraer

All Nippon Airways (ANA) ordered 15 E190-E2s with options for five more in February 2025, marking the first E2 order from a Japanese carrier. Deliveries begin in 2028. ANA will deploy the aircraft on domestic Japanese routes, replacing older regional types on services connecting secondary cities to its hubs at Tokyo Haneda (HND) and Tokyo Narita (NRT).

The E190-E2 is the smaller variant in the E2 family, carrying approximately 97-114 passengers depending on configuration, and is suited to routes where ANA’s 787s and A320neos carry more capacity than the demand requires. Japan’s domestic aviation market handled 111.47 million passengers in 2025, making it one of the fastest-growing major domestic markets in the developed world.

The growth has been driven in part by aviation replacing rail on routes where the Shinkansen takes three hours or more, a threshold at which air travel becomes competitive on time. Embraer’s Chief Commercial Officer Martyn Holmes described the order as a validation of the E190-E2’s role complementing larger narrowbodies in a full-service carrier’s network. ANA’s order also opens the door for further E2 sales in Japan, where Japan Airlines (JAL) and other domestic carriers are evaluating similar fleet renewal decisions over the next several years.

Avelo Airlines

50 firm + 50 options Embraer E195-E2s

Credit: Embraer

Avelo Airlines placed a firm order for 50 E195-E2s in September 2025 with purchase rights for an additional 50, making it one of the largest E2 commitments from a US carrier. Deliveries begin in the first half of 2027. Avelo operates a point-to-point model from secondary airports including Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) and Tweed New Haven Airport (HVN), where shorter runways and noise restrictions limit the aircraft types that can operate.

The E195-E2’s enhanced takeoff performance allows it to serve runway-constrained airports that a 737 or A320 may not be able to use at full payload.

Avelo currently operates a fleet of 737-800s and will transition to a mixed fleet as the E195-E2 deliveries arrive, eventually building its long-term operation around the Embraer type for routes where the smaller aircraft’s operating economics outperform the 737. The potential total commitment of 100 aircraft would make Avelo one of the largest E195-E2 operators in the world.