Inside Virgin Australia’s First Embraer E190-E2 Delivery Flight

Virgin Australia’s first Embraer E190-E2 has landed in Australia and is already turning heads. The jet touched down in Perth today, following an epic 25,000-kilometre journey from Embraer’s factory in Brazil.

Flight Hacks was onboard for the final leg of the delivery flight, a nearly five-hour hop from Canberra to Perth. After departing the São José dos Campos facility earlier in the week, the jet made stops in Texas, Los Angeles, Hawaii, Fiji and Canberra, before this final leg to Perth.

Virgin Australia’s new Embraer impresses as a quieter, roomier, and more modern regional jet, that’s touted as offering widebody aircraft comfort, on a smaller scale. Seats are clad in soft leather, with Economy legroom and seat width impressive over comparable aircraft. There’s also not a single middle seat onboard, with Business in a 1-2 configuration, and Economy offering two seats on either side of the aisle.

While there is no device holder in Economy, the E2 offers fast USB-A and USB-C charging at every seat. WiFi is due for installation in early 2026, and will be free for Business passengers and Velocity Platinum members. The overhead lockers are ample, and described as being able to handle one large carry-on suitcase per passenger, even if every seat is full. But while storage above impresses, there is unfortunately zero in-seat storage, with the seat pocket stretched tight, meaning only the safety card will fit.

One huge perk of the E190-E2 is the gorgeous Pratt & Whitney PW1900G jet engines, which contribute to a 30% fuel-saving over the Fokker 100 it replaces. For passengers, these engines mean the E-jet has the lowest noise profile of any aircraft in its segment. The noise, or lack thereof, is seriously impressive, and interestingly, behind the wing is a lot quieter than sitting up front.

Because this was a charter flight subject to different regulations, meals were offered even in Economy, and the cockpit door was open during the cruise. As an enormous aviation nerd, this was a huge dream come true!

The first aircraft is leased from global aircraft lessor Azorra, registered VH-E2A and named Coral Bay. It also happens to be the 1,900th delivery since the E-jet launched in 2004.

While operating under VARA and primarily servicing FIFO charter flights across Western Australia, the E2 makes sensible use of a two-class cabin. By installing Business Class, Virgin has the flexibility to easily deploy the E190-E2 on regular passenger flights, especially when charter demand is quieter. Plus, with a purchase option for a further eight of the type, travellers could eventually see the E2 on quieter routes throughout the east coast market, most likely out of Canberra.

Velocity CEO and Group Executive at VARA, Nick Rohrlach, described the delivery as a landmark day for aviation in Western Australia.

"The E190-E2 is a game-changer - it is more fuel-efficient, quieter, and more comfortable than anything else operating in the state's charter market today. It will significantly improve the travel experience for our charter clients and give us greater flexibility across VARA's operations.”

VH-E2A is expected to enter service next month, operating charter routes and supporting commercial services from Perth to destinations like Darwin, Kalgoorlie, Karratha, Port Hedland and Broome.

Of course, this delivery is somewhat of a blast from the past for Virgin Australia, which used to operate the E190 and even smaller E170 under its previous Virgin Blue brand. Those jets flew domestic hops such as Canberra-Hobart, Brisbane-Rockhampton, and Sydney-Canberra, until axing the fleet in 2018 to reduce costs.