matlok

I'm not shocked when I have to gate check my roll-aboard and kit-bag every time I deadhead on a -900...

HermannGraf

Quote:

Originally Posted by DAL4EVER

The CRJ900 was and is a "regional jet" in every sense of the word. Narrow fuselage, limited overhead bin space, etc. It was not designed by Bombardier to be a mainline plane. That's why you see it at regional airlines around the world. The EMB175/195 family was designed to be a small mainline product. The only reason the 175 is at regional operations is because mainline carriers were taking advantage of scope loopholes and farming out flying for a cheaper labor cost.

1.Lufthansa, Air France, SAS, Pluna and many other airlines around the world that are not Regionals operates the CRJ 900. Actually at Lufhansa the 900 is considered as more advance and more complicated than the A320 and new hires start on the Airbus while the CRJ900 is more senior staffed.

2.Skywest has been a big Embraer operator and have over 100 Embraer 120 operating along the west coast. Embraer has offered Skywest great deals on the E-170/E-175 but Bombardier takes care of the worlds biggest Bombardier product operator and makes sure to keep SKW buying by matching (and offering way better prices, quality and support) any attempt from Embraer to sell their jets to Skywest.

3. I have always been able to stow my rollaboard in the 900, not wheels first but perfectly sideways.............the Embraer may be more like a mini Airbus and looks nice with engines on the wings but it is put together with the lowest price/quality parts you can get approved and it shows after a while. While the Brazilian ingeniering is second to none the quality is poor comparing to Canadian products.

Fly4hire

True, however it would have been E175's for you as well were it not for the CRJ200 leases they needed to get out of. My point is NWA thought the E175 series a better platform, however they were locked into the leases and the only that Bombardier would let them out was to buy the CRJ900, so we split the order.

Tinpusher007

It is probably easier to just do it that way. I do find the E175 bins to be bigger but like I said, my purdy-neat fits and I was shocked that it did. Your flight kit will definitely fit, if nothing else.

upndsky

I've never flown a CRJ or any of the EMB170 series, but I commute on them all the time, either JB on their 190 or DCI on a CRJ200/700/900. On occasion, I've also jumped on a USAir Express 170.

From a pax perspective, it's a night and day difference. There's just no way around it. As others have said, the 700/900 is an overgrown regional, the 170/190 is a mini airliner.

1. When I commute on a 700/900, it's an automatic gate check. The gate agents even make the announcement: "This is a small airplane with limited overhead space," and they always tag your bag. On the 170/190, I rarely have to check my bags. If I do, it's because the flight is completely full and I'm the last one on. And then I do it more as a convenience to the FAs so they don't have to waste time shuffling bags around trying find room for mine.

2. With the CRJ, there's a good chance you'll get a hard stand. With the EMB, because of its stance and size, you'll almost always get a jet bridge. Trust me, pax hate hard stands.

3. On the EMB, I can stand up and take a wizz. It's a little more difficult on the 700/900. (On the 200, forget about it.)

To all you CRJ900 drivers, I understand you have an affinity towards the airplane you fly. I've heard she's great to fly. Heck, I still smile when I see an EMB145 go by. But from a passenger standpoint, she's an inferior product, especially if you're going to try to pass it off as a "mainline" aircraft to your paying customers, and especially your educated traveler, which is also your best paying customer. I will bet that is one reason why they are using the 175 on the DCA-LGA shuttle instead of the 900. I think they would have gotten a backlash if it had been the other way around.

acl65pilot

FWIW we put 170's/175's on hard stands over on Terminal E here in ATL. There is just no space for them.

Mesabah

It's not because it won't fit, It's because company policy is to gate check large size items to speed up the boarding process. The E175 has a different face plate which gives the illusion of it being bigger, it is not, I assure you. The E 175 has a wider cabin at the seats which makes it more spacious than the CR900. The window seat in the E175 is far more comfortable, the aisle seat is similar. The cabin door on the E175 is a better setup, that's why the 900 needs special gates. The CRJ 900 is a lot quieter in the cabin during flight. The E175 can take an addition 1000 punds of cargo, and can fly about 200 NM farther.

acl65pilot

The fact is that I could fit a 27 inch PNT bag in the CRJ200, sideways. It took up almost a whole bin. Not too cool from a passenger perspective.

Who really cares who has bigger or better bins. Fact is that the CRJ900 is a long aircraft. Heck it is almost as long as a DC-9. It is a large aircraft too. It should be on mainline. Nuf Said. Simply put if you do not want to fly it here, do not bid it.
The CRJ series is a great pilots' jet. It is the first generation RJ design. Of course there are going to be some issues with it. The E-series came out as a second generation jet. It has been tweaked to make it better from a passenger perspective. That is where it matters.
FWIW, my brother who is a savvy international traveler came to see me and flew on a Mid Atlantic 170 when they first came out. I had to pull the Schedule off of the LLC website to show him that if was not a 737. Herein likes the major difference. Passengers/ the flying public see it as a mainline jet.

DAL4EVER

1. Lufthansa, Air France, et al., are the flag carriers for those countries. I'm referring to the majors here in the states.

2. You're correct that Skywest operates the Embraer Brasilias but the only commonality a Brasilia has with an E175 is the ram's horn yolk. Their jets are Bombardier and that's why they use the Bombardier product. I was involved with looking at bringing the E-jet to a regional a few years ago who operated Bombardier products and they declined the E-jet because of cost of acquisition and no fleet commonality.

3. I agree that the quality control on Embraer wears off after a while. That's one reason the E-jet may not be actively flown by any US mainline airline. I've been on a couple of E175s that look very worn and they were only a year old.

Mesabah

The argument you're making is a dangerous one, it represents the very essence of why we are where we are today. The CRJ200/700/900 and even the Saab are mainline products. The seats are advertised as mainline and are sold by mainline. The difference is the pilots that fly them. You can't make the argument that since the plane can pass for mainline a certain pilot group should be considered a mainline pilot. It's that thinking that ruined this profession in the first place.

Nothing personal but it sounds like you mainline guys do not want the RJ/ERJ or any turboprop on the mainline list because you might get stuck in it if times get rough. Maybe there is another pay cut or work rules give away down the road so that won't happen :'(