Air Tahiti orders an additional ATR 72-500
Toulouse, 13 October 2005
ATR and Air Tahiti announced today an order for one ATR 72-500 aircraft, plus one option. This order was unveiled on the occasion of a press conference held today at the European Regions Airlines Association General Assembly, Gothenburg (Sweden).
This new contract will allow the main domestic airline of French Polynesia to cope with the additional traffic generated by the new upmarket resorts being developed on Bora-Bora.
The aircraft is scheduled to be delivered in June 2008.
Air Tahiti, a long standing ATR operator (since 1986) already ordered five ATR-500 series aircraft last year and currently operates 10 new-generation ATRs (4 ATR 42-500s and 6 ATR 72-500s) on its inter-island network.
Filippo Bagnato, Chief Executive Officer of ATR, declared: “I’m delighted about this new proof of confidence by Air Tahiti which has made its choice in favour of ATR aircraft for 20 years now.”
ATR aircraft are a key element for the development of Air Tahiti’s network, since they are well adapted to “island hopping”. ATR 42-500 and ATR 72-500 models are the only aircraft in their class certified for 120-minute extended range twin-engine operations (ETOPs). This certification is extremely important for an operator such as Air Tahiti and recognises the significant in-service experience gathered by the ATR fleet and the excellent reliability of ATR aircraft and their systems.
“With this agreement, we will be able to maintain our fleet up-to-date with the latest standards of comfort and performance and satisfy our increasing number of customers”, Marcel Galenon, Managing Director of Air Tahiti, declared.
Filippo Bagnato also added: ” From the beginning of the year 2005, ATR has logged over 60 new aircraft sales. This commercial success is evidence of the strong resurgence of the turboprop aircraft in the regional aviation market.”
Since the beginning of the programme, ATR has sold 750 aircraft (391 ATR 42s and 359 ATR 72s) and 62 from January 1st onwards.
The ATR 72-500: New Generation aircraft
The ATR 72-500 is the latest development of the ATR 72 with a proven average dispatch reliability of more than 99.6%. This version shares the same power-plant, six-bladed propellers, the same interior design and soundproofing techniques of the ATR 42-500, thus offering the same excellent comfort and passenger appeal. Its standard capacity is of 68 seats. The ATR 72-500 has the lowest seat mile costs, recognised as a benchmark for the regional market. The increased power and aerodynamic refinements provide excellent take-off and landing performance.
The maximum take-off weight (MTOW) was increased by 300 kg, from 22,500 to 22,800 kg, end of 2004.
All ATR models are compliant with noise regulations and have a large margin with regard to future Chapter IV (ICAO) noise regulations, effective 1st January 2006. The advanced six-blade propeller provides remarkably low outside noise levels. Low fuel burn and gaseous emissions contribute to make the ATR environment friendly.
About Air Tahiti
With an average annual traffic of 720,000 passengers, Papeete-based Air Tahiti is the principle domestic airline of the French Polynesia.
Since 1980, air traffic in the Polynesian archipelago has been increasing at an annual average from 7 to 10% as a result of hotel development on the islands as well as a boost in the local economy. The airline’s network includes 42 islands scattered over the full dimension of French Polynesia.
About ATR
Toulouse, Southern France-based regional aircraft ATR is the world leader in the 50 to 70-seat turboprop market. ATR is an equal partnership between Alenia Aeronautica (Finmeccanica group) and EADS. ATR is certified ANSI/ISO/ASQ Q 9001:2000 and EN/AS/JISQ 9100, the worldwide quality standard in the field of aeronautics.
Contact:
| Frédéric Lahache |
Tel.: 33 5 62 21 60 61 Fax: 33 5 62 21 68 00 www.atraircraft.com mailto: frederic.lahache@atr.fr |
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