The Hindu Business Line : French aircraft co ATR to set up training centres in India

FRANCE-based small aircraft manufacturer Avions de Transport Regional (ATR) plans to set up an aircraft maintenance centre and a training centre for pilots in India.

The training centre will be set up in collaboration with the low-cost airline, Air Deccan, and will be jointly operated by ATR and Air Deccan in the initial years. These centres, it hopes, will help service its customers in the Indian region more effectively.

Twenty-four ATR aircraft are currently operating in the Indian skies to service feeder and short haul routes. ATR claims a market share of 60 per cent in the small aircraft market in India.

ATR views India as a lucrative market for its 20-90 seat aircraft because of expanding coverage on the domestic feeder routes and the growing clout of low cost carriers. The company expects domestic passenger traffic in the country to expand almost three-fold, by 297 per cent, in the years to 2016 and expects that airlines in the country will place orders for 220 new aircraft over the next 15 years.

"The ATR 42 and 72 series are tailored to the business model of a low-cost carrier. Their low acquisition and maintenance costs, coupled with the high reliability and quick turnaround times, make turbo-props the lowest cost options for short haul routes," said Mr Mario Formica, Vice-President, Marketing, ATR.

On whether the rapid expansion in passenger traffic will not force airlines in India to opt for larger aircraft than ATR, Mr Filippo Bagnato, CEO, said the turbo-prop would continue to be the aircraft of choice to ply short haul routes because of its ability to access short or tough airfields, which cannot be accessed by regional jets.

The company also claimed that it had tweaked the internal seat layout and structure of ATR 500 - its new series of aircraft - for better passenger comfort. These aircraft offer more legroom, wider aisles, larger overhead bins and have less vibration within the cabins than the competing aircraft of this size.

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