SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP):

Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer SA has signed a deal to sell 20 of its new E-195 large regional jets to local airline BRA Transportes Aereas.

The deal, first announced in June, includes options for BRA to buy 20 more E-195s, making it the first Brazilian carrier to order a large fleet of domestically built jets.

President Luiz Inacio da Silva who attended the signing ceremony late Tuesday, said the deal could "mark a change in Brazilian aviation".

Silva said the deal consolidates Embraer as the world's third-largest aircraft producer and the largest producer of airplanes of less than 120 seats.

Million-dollar deal

Back in 2001, former flagship Varig had a fleet of 15 50-seater Embraer ERJ-145 planes, but no other local airlines use Embraer planes.

If all these options are taken, the accord also allows for 20 more options and 15 more rights to buy, which do not reserve a space in the production line, Embraer said in a press release.

The delivery of the first plane is expected in February to March of 2008 in a deal that could be worth US$2.7 billion (€2 billion).

BRA chief executive Humberto Folegatti said the airline hopes to buy up to 100 planes in the next five years while developing routes between mid-sized cities.