Subjects: Republic, Alpi Eagles, Embraer, Frontier
Republic Repurchases Stock
Following the lead of SkyWest (SKYW) and Mesa (MESA) in repurchasing stock, Republic Airways Holdings (RJET) is will purchase two million shares of common stock from its former majority stockholder, WexAir LLC. Related Story The repurchase of the stock is at par value of $.001 at a price of $20.50 per share, a sum that totals $41 million. Once the transaction is completed on March 21, Republic will have about 41.1 million shares of common stock outstanding.

Alpi Eagles Makes $584 million in Embraer Jets
Italian carrier Alpi Eagles is acquiring five Embraer (ERJ) 195s for its expansion in Europe. It also took options on an additional six aircraft for a total contract value, if all options are exercised of $584 million. The order does not change Embraer’s orderbook as it was already recorded under “undisclosed.” The ERJ 195 will be serving the airline's intra-European network routes, configured in a single-class, 122-seat interior. The airline is the world's launch customer for the high-capacity version of the 195, which was announced at last year’s Farnborough. Embraer had logged 619 firm orders and 568 options for its ERJ 170, 175 and 190 E-Jet family from 32 customers worldwide. Alpi Eagles was established in 1979 in Thiene, province of Vicenza, Italy, as an aerobatic team. In 1987, it began air-taxi services, mainly for members, who were important local Venetian businessmen. Alpi Eagles began operating as a private airline for national and international transport in 1996. Today, the main headquarters are in Sant'Angelo di Piove, province of Padua.
 
Q400s to Make Up Six Percent of FRNT
While concentrating on boosting international flights to more than 20 percent of its business by 2009, Frontier’s (FRNT) expansion of its feeder services through subsidiary Lynx Aviation and Republic Airline’s regional jet will see Lynx’s Q400 turboprop flights making up 6.3 percent and regional-jet flights making up 8.4 percent. Frontier expects Southwest Airlines flights to overlap with about 17 percent of its business by then, according to comments made before the JP Morgan Conference last week.