French-Italian aircraft manufacturer ATR unveiled its agenda for the upcoming Farnborough International Airshow, which will take place between from July 18th and 22th.
The company highlighted a press conference to be held on July 19th, which will be attended by Stefano Bortoli, CEO of the company. Its EVP, Fabrice Vautier, will also participate. The meeting will feature «the latest updates» from ATR and, for the first time since 2018, the company’s forecast for the global air market.
At Farnborough, ATR will introduce the Pratt & Whitney Canada PWA27XT engine as the powerplant that will equip its ATR 42 and ATR 72 aircraft in the near future. Starting in November this year, French airline Air Corsica will take delivery of the first ATR 72-600s with these engines.
In addition, it will showcase its Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) ATR 42 aircraft. So far, it has already received firm orders for twenty aircraft. Highlights include an order for ten aircraft from Elix Aviation Capital and the order from Air Tahiti, which will acquire two aircraft and become the launch customer of the type. The geography of the scattered Polynesian islands and the short runways in the region make this model a great addition for the airline.
On the other hand, the manufacturer will highlight the cargo performance of the ATR 72, which has consolidated its position as a regional aircraft for transporting supplies and goods over the past few months. There are currently around 140 ATR freighters in operation worldwide. This represents around one third of the world’s regional freighter fleet.
It will also introduce the future EVO aircraft family. Its development, announced last May, will be based on the 72-600 model. Improvements include a new eight-bladed propeller design (replacing Collins Aerospace’s current six-bladed model) and a new engine that will be able to run on either all sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) or battery-electric propulsion.
Finally, an ATR 72-600 will be on static display. The company noted that the model expects to be certified to operate with 100% SAF on both engines by 2025. Last June 21th, an ATR 72-600 from Braathens Airlines linked Malmö and Stockholm-Bromma airports in one hour and twenty minutes. The operation was a milestone in aviation history, as it marked the first flight of an airliner powered entirely by sustainable fuel.
