Industry Leonardo delivers 1500th ATR fuselage

During a ceremony, held at Leonardo’s facility in Pomigliano D’Arco (Naples), the fuselage had been handed over. Representatives from Leonardo and ATR attended the event, as well as personnel and various institutions.

The delivery marks a new, important, yet historic milestone for the Italian manufacturer, as the ATR is amongst the most successful commercial airplanes with over 1,700 orders. Customer Japan Air Commuter will receive the 1500th Leonardo build ATR.

From Leonardo´s Pomigliano D’Arco production line, the fuselage will be transported to Toulouse, where the aircraft will be assembled. After several mandatory flight and ground tests, the ATR then will be delivered to customer Japan Air Commuter, which is a Japanese regional carrier owned by JAL.

Mr. Alessandro Profumo, Leonardo’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “The ATR’s commercial success proves how the aircraft’s performance, operational flexibility, cost-effectiveness in-service and reduced environmental impact have represented, for over the last 30 years since the beginning of the programme, a reference point for the regional air transport industry thanks to the excellent project’s characteristics and also to the continuous technological upgrades [...] This important milestone” adds Profumo “provides further evidence of the excellence of our role in the commercial aviation industry as well as of our facilities in Southern Italy with their highly qualified personnel”.

Christian Scherer, ATR’s Chief Executive Officer, added: “The success of ATR worldwide reflects the continuous commitment of our shareholders toward the programme [...] Today, we can proudly say that our aircraft are operated by 200 airlines in nearly 100 countries. The contribution of Leonardo over the last ten years to double the production of fuselages and match the increasing market demand has been crucial to securing our market leading position. We congratulate all employees on achieving this significant milestone together and to continue building the future of regional aircraft.”

ATR´s newest product, the ATR 600 series, features new state-of-the-art cockpit avionics and modern navigation tools. Furthermore, the aircraft is said to be very fuel and cost-efficient, resulting in low maintenance costs as well.

To date, over 1700 ATR aircraft have been ordered, from which 1400 are already delivered. Broken down, an ATR aircraft lands or takes-off every 8 seconds somewhere in the world. ATR has established itself in the regional turboprop aircraft market with receiving nearly 75% of all the orders for this aircraft category.