South African Airlink has leased four ERJ-135 pre-owned jets from Embraer’s subsidiary, ECC Leasing.

The ERJ-135 jets, powered by Rolls-Royce AE3007 engines, have seating for 37 passengers. It has a range of 1,750nm and can travel at speeds of up to Mach 0.78.

The jets will be based in Johannesburg, South Africa, and deployed on regional routes expected to be increasingly busy, with 2010 FIFA World Cup in June.

South African Airlink CEO Rodger Foster said the new ERJ-135 jets would meet the growing demand of its domestic and intra-regional markets.

The airline acts as a feeder network for linking South Africa’s smaller towns with regional centres and hubs.