CommuteAir (C5, Cleveland Hopkins) has acquired an unidentified E170 from Nordic Aviation Capital ahead of its planned push into pilot training and limited charter operations.
N780NC (msn 17000280), a 14.3-year-old ex-Airnorth (Australia) (TL, Darwin) jet, is parked at Tucson International and is likely to join CommuteAir's fleet. The American carrier told ch-aviation it already accepted the aircraft.
The American regional carrier, thus far specialised in providing capacity to mainline operators, announced plans to expand into the training and charter segment last year, initially planning to add an E175. It was certified for these operations in March 2023. The incoming E170 will join CommuteAir's fleet of seventy-five E145s operated on behalf of United Airlines (UA, Chicago O'Hare), which owns a 40% stake in the regional carrier. CommuteAir owns all 75 aircraft.
The E170 will be the airline's largest-ever aircraft.
