World’s 1st Embraer E190F lands in Europe ahead of EIS with Bridges Air Cargo
August 4, 2025
The first Embraer E190F has arrived in Europe ahead of its entry into service later this year.
The aircraft, leased from Regional One to Bridges Air Cargo, landed at Maastricht Airport on 1 August.
Crossing the Atlantic with an Embraer E190F
The first Embraer passenger-to-freight conversion carries tail number N986TA. It was delivered to TACA International Airlines in June 2010 and underwent conversion at Embraer’s facility in São José dos Campos, Brazil, starting last November.
The E190F took its first flight in April 2024.
Now complete and ready for its new owner, the E190F made the transatlantic crossing from Brazil to the Netherlands after three fuelling stops, starting on 31 July.
The first E190 freighter for Bridges Air Cargo (Swiftair Malta). https://t.co/xv6lUxzvqH © Eduardo Salesp pic.twitter.com/siGrfR1Tlt
— JetPhotos (@JetPhotos) August 3, 2025
The first leg saw the 15-year-old jet fly from the Embraer facility in São José dos Campos, southeast Brazil, to Recife on the northeast coast.
From there, the aircraft made a stop in Espargos in Cape Verde, landing there the same day.
The next morning, the aircraft was flown to Gran Canaria, before completing the journey to the Dutch air cargo centre of Maastricht that evening.
Embraer’s conversion programme
The E190F is the first aircraft in the company’s new E-Jet P2F programme. Embraer says the P2F facility is designed to meet growing global demand for smaller, more efficient freighters.
This inaugural E190F is the first of two aircraft to be operated by Bridges Air Cargo, a Malta-based logistics carrier.
The company partners with leading shipment companies, including FedEx, DHL and UPS.
Guy Bridges, managing director of Bridges Air Cargo, said: “It’s fitting that Bridges becomes the launch customer for the E-Freighter as we celebrate 35 years of operations and over a billion kilograms moved for the express market.
“The aircraft’s size fills a unique and underserved space in the cargo segment. It strengthens our operational capability and paves the way for the development of promising new routes.
“We are excited to partner with Embraer and Regional One on what we see as a pivotal advancement for regional air cargo.”
Both aircraft were acquired via Regional One, a leasing company that has partnered with Embraer to facilitate the introduction of the E-Freighter programme in Europe.
Regional One’s President Hank Gibson said: “Together with Embraer and our valued partners, we are setting a new benchmark for regional cargo transport – transforming one of the world’s most efficient regional jets into the next-generation freighter.”
Entry into commercial service is expected by the end of the third quarter of 2025.
First Embraer 190 (F) for Bridges Air Cargo Photo by Alejandro Hernández León https://t.co/tz1Ha3gUmI
— Airliners.net (@airliners_net) August 2, 2025
Offering a payload capacity of up to 13,500 kilograms, the E190F combines a main deck cargo hold with underfloor compartments, resulting in approximately 40% more volumetric capacity than traditional large turboprops.
The type also boasts a range significantly greater than comparable turboprop freighters, while offering lower trip costs than larger narrowbody aircraft such as the Boeing 737 or Airbus A320.
What other aircraft have undergone the P2F conversion?
The Boeing 737 family dominates the P2F market. Indeed, the 737-800 has been converted at a faster rate than any other P2F programme.
In the eight years since the first conversions, the 737-800 P2F has grown rapidly to more than 200 aircraft, according to IBA, an aviation market intelligence and advisory company.
Demand for the Boeing 777-300ER P2F (Passenger-to-Freighter) conversion is also said to be accelerating, driven by the need for large widebody capacity and the upcoming end of the 777F production in 2027.
Airbus has also benefited from a new market in second-hand freighters with the deliveries of its first P2F aircraft.
In 2012, the Airbus conversion programme was launched in collaboration with ST Engineering and Airbus’ joint venture, Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW).
In June 2015, the programme was extended to the A320/A321P2F family.
Qantas received the world’s first Airbus A321 passenger-to-freighter converted aircraft in 2020.
The aircraft was leased by aircraft asset manager Vallair to the Australian flag carrier to operate services on behalf of Australia Post.
The A321P2F was the first in its size category to offer containerised loading in both the main (up to 14 full container positions) and lower deck (up to 10 container positions).
In 2021, the first A320 P2F took flight, and the type was delivered to launch customer Vaayu Group in July 2022. It was then sub-leased to Pradhaan Air Express, a new all-cargo airline in India.
