ATR aircraft may not be jumbo in size but it is big nevertheless when it comes to eco- friendliness.
The French manufacturer believes its ATR-42 or ATR-72 series burn lesser fuel and emit much lesser carbon when compared to aircraft of the same range and capability.
Laurent Negre, ATR sales director (Australia & South Pacific), says both ATR’s 42-500 and the larger 72-500 suit the Pacific’s diverse and pristine environment.
“Our 72-500 series consumes as little as half of the fuel used by a similar sized regional jet,” said Negre.
“By comparison, a regional jet emits at least 50% more CO2 into the atmosphere on every flight.”
Figures released by the aircraft manufacturer to a conference of the New Zealand chapter of the Royal Aeronautical Society show that a turboprop ATR uses 855kg of fuel per trip.
This is compared to the 1320kg used by a regional jet, some 54% more.
For the same journey, ATR believes its emission rate is about 2700kg while it is slightly over 4000kg for a regional jet.
Being environmentally friendly for ATR begins right from day one.
ATR factories are ISO14001 certified, and their objectives include:
• 80% of non dangerous waste sorted;
• 70% of non dangerous waste recovered for raw materials or energy;
• 100% of dangerous waste processed by the authorised organisations; and
• 100% of chemical products managed in compliance with regulations (management of stock and consumption, labeling of containers, safety data sheets).
ATR is also an active member of initiatives aimed at producing ‘greener’ aircraft which included membership of the International Civil Aviation Organisation working group, Europe’s transportation research board committee on aviation and environment, and the Clean Sky European Programme in greener aviation technologies.
The Toulouse-based turboprop aircraft producer says it also supports the clean development mechanism of Kyoto Protocol, the international treaty that regulates carbon emissions.
From this year, ATR will participate in a bio-fuel three-year demonstrator programme as part of a push to use cleaner fuel in all its aircraft.
It is also a party to Europe’s Clean Sky research programme which operates on a €1.6 billion budget over a seven-year period.
“The Clean Sky JTI is an industry driven 7-year research programme plan for greener generation of European air transport,” said a company presentation brochure.
“Its purpose is to demonstrate and validate the technological breakthroughs that are necessary to reach the environmental goals set by the Advisory Council for Aeronautics Research in Europe (ACARE).
“JTI is a new instrument created by the European Commission (EC) for the 7th Framework Programme for Research (FP7) to allow large scale and long-term public-private research partnerships.”
Pushing this drive for greener flights is the EC’s decision to include aviation in its emission trading scheme (ETS) by 2012.
This will be applicable to all flights arriving or departing from an EU airport.
“The new CO2 Emission Scheme will lead to more ambitious fuel efficiency targets for airlines,” said ATR.
Profile and visibility
“ATR will contribute with advanced turboprop technologies and efficient power-plant to meet targets and minimise the impact of CO2 emissions trading scheme.”
In the Pacific region, the French aircraft manufacturer has steadily worked to increase its profile and visibility.
Air New Zealand is its biggest client which has a fleet of 11 ATR 72-500s operating key domestic routes in New Zealand.
ATR is also big in the two French Pacific territories of French Polynesia and New Caledonia. Air Tahiti operates seven ATR 72-500s, four ATR 42-500s and another ATR 72 500 set to be delivered in 2009.
Another ATR 42-500 operates in the French territory as a VIP aircraft for members of the territorial government.
Air Caledonie, on the other hand, operates two ATR 72-500s and one ATR 42-500 on a network linking the capital, Noumea, with seven mainland and island destinations.
Vanuatu’s domestic and international air operator Air Vanuatu also flies ATR aircraft.
The airline has placed an order for an ATR 72-500 to replace its ATR 42-300 that links the national capital, Port Vila, to the islands of Santo and Tanna, as well as to neighbouring New Caledonia.
Recent operators of the French turboprop aircraft have been Pacific Sun of Fiji which flies two ATR 42-500 purchased from Air Mauritius and MacAir, Queensland’s regional carrier. This airline operates an ATR42-500.
“Turboprop aircraft are crucial not only to the airlines of the Pacific, but to the economies of Pacific nations which demand reliable and economical air services,” said Negre.
“The Pacific region is characterised by operations to secondary airfields with short runways and limited infrastructure, but also low levels of yields and traffic—making it very difficult to justify the economic operation of a larger jet aircraft.
“This market also features a significant number of long overwater flights both on domestic inter-island services and regional international flights—missions best suited to turboprop aircraft such as our ATR 72-500, which exclusively features 120-minute ETOPS certification. That we are continuing to receive orders for our aircraft in this region after more than two decades of service is a major vote of confidence in the ATR family of aircraft.
“It is also a strong endorsement of our ability to evolve our aircraft over this period to continue delivering high efficiency, low cost operations for our customers, and environmentally responsible transport solutions for the communities that our aircraft serve.”
