Brazilian plane maker Embraer said Monday that it is selling 100 executive jets to U.S.-based Flight Options in a deal valued at US$746 million (¤510 million), according to AP. Flight Options LLC, headquartered in Cleveland, also took out options on additional 50 of Embraer's Phenom 300 executive jets that could raise the deal's value to US$1.1 billion (¤752 million), Embraer said in a statement. It's the largest executive jet order ever for Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica SA, which specializes in commercial jets for the passenger market but is trying to boost its share of the executive jet market. The deal with Flight Options also includes a maintenance and support program valued at more than US$200 million (¤137 million), Embraer said. Phenom 300s carry up to nine people, including crew, and Flight Options said in a statement that the order is «striking evidence of the continued growth of the private jet industry.» Embraer, the world's fourth largest plane maker, is a former state-owned company that nearly collapsed in the 1990s but added nearly 4,500 Brazilian workers and a graveyard shift this year to boost production amid rising demand for its commercial and executive jets. Embraer specializes in mid-range passenger jets seating 80-110 passengers for short and medium range routes for airlines that don't want to risk unfilled seats on larger planes that use much more fuel. But Embraer chief executive Frederico Fleury hopes the executive jet segment will make up more than 20 percent of Embraer sales in five years. Embraer's American depository shares were up 0.3 percent in New York Monday, or US$0.12 (¤0.08) to US$43.70 (¤29.80).
