February 7, 2008 -- Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer announced the sale of six E-195 large regional jets to Spain's Universal Airlines Thursday in a deal worth $237 million.

Universal also secured rights to purchase an additional six aircraft that could double the value of the sale, Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica SA said in a statement.

The contract for the sale of the 122-seat planes was signed with the Spanish airline's holding company JJH Capital, which is owned by Juan Jose Hidalgo, who recently created Universal to fly domestic and intra-European routes, Embaer's statement said.

Delivery of the first E-195 to Universal is scheduled for May.

Embraer, the world's fourth-largest plane maker, is a formerly state-owned company that nearly collapsed in the 1990s but added nearly 4,500 Brazilian workers and a graveyard shift last year to boost production amid rising demand for its commercial and executive jets.

Embraer specializes in passenger jets for short- and medium-range routes for airlines that don't want to risk unfilled seats on larger planes that use much more fuel.

Source: Associated Press Newswires