Embraer E190 vs Embraer E195

The Embraer E190 and E195 are the two larger first-generation E-Jets, and the comparison is one of length alone: the E195 is a 2.4 m stretch of the E190 with twenty more seats and nothing else changed. Both have the 28.7 m wing, General Electric CF34-10E engines, Honeywell Primus Epic cockpit, fly-by-wire controls and a single type rating that also covers the E170 and E175. The E190 entered service with JetBlue in 2005 and seats 98 to 114; the E195 followed with Flybe in 2006 and seats 108 to 124. Range is about 2,400 nautical miles for the E190 in its advanced-range version and 2,200 for the E195, because the stretch adds weight without adding fuel.

The E190 was the volume seller, with more than 500 built for JetBlue, Air Canada, Lufthansa CityLine, KLM Cityhopper, British Airways CityFlyer and many others, because its size fitted 100-seat routes that airlines were replacing older jets on. The E195 appealed to carriers with denser regional networks, notably Azul in Brazil and LOT, Austrian and Aeroméxico Connect. Both have been succeeded by the E2 generation, the E190-E2 and much longer E195-E2, and both first-generation types are now common in second-hand fleets worldwide.

Passenger experience

The cabins are identical in cross-section: 2-2 seating with no middle seats, seats about 18 inches wide, big windows and overhead bins that fit a wheeled carry-on, and underwing engines that keep the whole cabin quiet. The E195 simply has four or five more rows and a second pair of overwing exits, which gives it two sets of extra-legroom exit seats to the E190's one. Pitch ranges from 29 inches on leisure layouts to 32 or more with a business cabin. The E195's longer, lighter body makes it a touch more lively in gusty approaches, though few passengers would notice. For the best seat on either, take a window ahead of the wing or an exit row; the last row is beside the rear lavatory.

Which to choose

Airlines chose on seat count: the E190 for 100-seat routes with the range to spare, the E195 where 120 seats could be filled on shorter sectors. For passengers there is no difference worth seeking out, and either is among the most comfortable aircraft at its size.