British Airways scraps its Embraer E170 fleet

It looks like the Boeing 747 and Airbus A318 won’t be the last fleet casualties at British Airways.

According to Simple Flying, BA CityFlyer has decided to get rid of its six Embraer E170 aircraft.

BA CityFlyer is the British Airways subsidiary which operates flights from London City Airport.

The length of the runway at London City, and the need for departing aircraft to gain height quickly enough to avoid Canary Wharf, means that the smaller Embraer aircraft have been the preferred choice there. In the last few years, BA CityFlyer has been investing in the larger E190 version.

It isn’t the end of the line for the six aircraft in the E170 fleet. They are being sold to Envoy Air in the US, which operates as an American Airlines feeder under the ‘American Eagle’ brand.

The sale will not have a major impact on BA CityFlyer. It now has a fleet of 22 x E190 aircraft, the majority of which are currently parked at Norwich Airport. The loss of the six smaller E170 planes will not lead to noticeable cuts to services once flying resumes in earnest.

Envoy expects to take delivery from May, with the planes back in service – after having the seat count reduced – from July.

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

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British Airways American Express Premium Plus

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You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

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The Platinum Card from American Express

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We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

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You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus:

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Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

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