Mesa Airlines (YV, Phoenix Sky Harbor) has announced changes to its capacity purchase agreement (CPA) with United Airlines (UA, Chicago O'Hare), entailing the addition of twenty E175LLs, which will replace CRJ700s operating under the United Express brand.

The regional capacity provider said in a press release that the twenty E175LLs will deliver between May 2020 and the end of 2020. The aircraft will be owned and financed by Mesa Airlines and be covered under a 12-year CPA.

Mesa Airlines also extended the contract for the operation of forty-two E175s owned by United for another five years, through the end of 2024, with an option to extend it through 2027. A further eighteen E175s, which are owned by Mesa Airlines, are contracted through 2028.

The changes bring the total number of E175s to be operated by Mesa for United as of 2021 to 80 units.

The airline said that it will lease all twenty CRJ700s it currently operates for United "to another United Express carrier for a term of seven years". Mesa Airlines owns all twenty regional jets.

United Express flights are also operated by Air Wisconsin (ZW, Appleton Outgamie County Regional), CommutAir (Cleveland Hopkins), ExpressJet Airlines (Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson), GoJet Airlines (G7, St. Louis Lambert International), Republic Airways (YX, Indianapolis International), SkyWest Airlines (OO, Salt Lake City), and Trans States Airlines (St. Louis Lambert International). Of these, ExpressJet Airlines, Republic Airways, and SkyWest also operate E175s, while GoJet and SkyWest also operate CRJ700s.

According to the ch-aviation fleets module, Mesa Airlines also operates sixty-four CRJ900s for American Airlines (AA, Dallas/Fort Worth). It said in a separate press release that after it had failed to meet certain performance criteria, American Airlines is now able to exercise its right to remove two CRJ900s from the CPA.

"American has agreed to defer the right to remove these two aircraft but has elected to remove one of two previously deferred aircraft, effective January 2, 2020," Mesa Airlines said.

The airline added that due to the increased utilisation of the remaining aircraft, it expected to reach a comparable number of block hours operated for American despite having one aircraft less.