The Air Component of the Belgian Armed Forces sold its Embraer fleet of four Embraer ERJ135 and ERJ145 jets. The move was taken following the Belgian Ministry of Defense’s decision to jump from operating its own governmental aircraft to leased jets.

All four of the last remaining Embraer jets would be transferred to the new owner Amelia, a subsidiary of Regourd Aviation Group, a French aviation company. The new owner would house the former government jets and also take all the associated spare parts, announced the local media.

Amelia would deploy the former Belgian Air Component’s Embraer jet fleet for regional passenger flights over Europe and Africa. It already operates a fleet consisting of a total of 19 aircraft, including Embraer ERJ135, ERJ145, ATR42, ATR72, Dassault Falcon 900EX, and Embraer Legacy 600 planes.

The first 18-year-old Embraer ERJ145 with a high-quality interior was delivered to the new owner on November 18, 2020. The second ERJ145 jet is scheduled to be handed to Amelia at the end of December 2020. Another two 19-year-old Embraer ERJ135s would be transferred in 2021, after completing its last Belgian Air Component’s operations on December 23, 2020. The spare parts of the four former Belgian government planes would also be delivered for Amelia before the end of 2020.

With an aim to save costs, the Belgian Ministry of Defense initiated the sale of its government jets back in January 2018. The Ministry of Defense plans to say goodbye to its entire fleet after operating the jets for almost 20 years. 

The government of Belgium replaced the previous fleet with two Falcon 7X jets which it has been leasing under a dry-lease agreement with Abelag Aviation since early 2020.