ATR’s 21st century regional airliner
European regional aircraft builder ATR is close to completing certification of its upgraded ATR-42 and -72 500 aircraft to a new -600 series.
The new ATR 600s will offer an increase of about 500 kg in increased maximum takeoff and zero fuel weights, offering added payload of five passengers or equivalent, or an extra 190 nautical mines (350 km) of fuel range.
The two models, seating up to 42 or 72 passengers respectively, have been fitted with an ultra-modern “glass cockpit” designed by Thales, and based on the integrated avionics systems Thales developed for the Airbus A380, the world’s largest airliner.
The upgrade represents a complete flight deck redesign and avionics suite with five large screens, integrated with a new flight management system from Thales, says ATR’s Sales Director, Australia and South Pacific, Laurent Negre:
“When it comes to market it will for sure be the newest and most modern regional aircraft flight deck. Flight management systems will have capability for RNP [required navigation performance] 0.3 initially, with the possibility of upgrading to higher precision in certification trials. It will also have an inbuilt capability for Category III approaches without the necessity to add a heads-up display as on some other aircraft, so it will be Cat III, RNP and WAAS [wide area augmentation systems] capable as well. So it’s basically providing everything the airline needs including the most stringent and demanding environments in terms of communication and navigation.”
The first ATR 72-600 aircraft started its flight trials programme on July 24, 2009 after being powered-on in December 2008. ATR will announce the official presentation of the first ATR -600 series’ aircraft, a 70-passenger ATR 72-600, at a ceremony on October 1 at the manufacturer’s factory in Toulouse. The company expects to start the flight the flight testing of the first model which is the 70 seat ATR72-600, during the 2009 European summer.
Issues of crew commonality between current models and the -600 series are still being evaluated because ATR expects existing customers are likely to “grow into” the new variant, and M Negre is confident that cross-crew training will be developed so pilots can fly either type in ta mixed fleet.
In the Asia Pacific region, Air Tahiti is the launch customer for the South Pacific region for the ATR-600s. The global ATR fleet now stands at over 800 aircraft delivered, and forward orders bring total sales to 998 ATR 42 and 72 units since the beginning of the program – just two units short of 1,000.
Meanwhile fast-growing Indonesian regional carrier Lion Air is pressing ahead with its orders for ten firm TR 72-500, to expand its regional network as part of a strategy to build an integrated route network using its 37 existing aircraft servicing not only all of Indonesia’s major cities and tourist destinations, but also Singapore, Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Ho Chi Minh. Launched in 2000 with a single aircraft, Lion Air now claims the biggest market share in Indonesia, with plans to expand its position both in the domestic market and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
ATR is an equal partnership between Alenia Aeronautica (a Finmeccanica company) and EADS, which in 2008 posted an annual turnover record, with US $ 1.3 billion.
