Air Tahiti has taken delivery of its 25th ATR aircraft, an ATR 72-500, during a ceremony at the manufacturer's facility in Toulouse. This delivery takes the airline's fleet to three ATR 42-500s and seven ATR 72-500s.
An operator of ATR aircraft since 1986, Air Tahiti is also one of the launch customers of the new ATR ‘-600 series’, with an order for three ATR 42-600s and two ATR 72-600s, deliveries of which will begin in spring 2011. Air Tahiti will become, at the same time, the first operator of ATR ‘-600s’ in the South Pacific.
The new ATR 72-500 is configured with 66 seats, is equipped with ETOPS (Extended Range Twin-engine Operations) 120 minutes and with the ‘Elegance’ cabin. The aircraft is powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PW127M engines.
Thanks to the ETOPS 120 capability of the ‘-500 series’, an exclusive feature in regional aviation, Air Tahiti is able to operate its ATR fleet over a network of islands as vast as Europe, providing essential air transport services across French Polynesia.
Maté Galenon, managing director of Air Tahiti, commented, “We are very satisfied to maintain such a long partnership with ATR, reinforced by the delivery of this 25th aircraft. For more than 20 years, the ATR have proven to be the right choice for our inter-island operations. The high commonality between the ATR 42s and ATR 72s represents a clear advantage for us, as it allows us to operate our fleet optimally in some 40 destinations, while minimising our operating costs.”
Photo: Maté Galenon, managing director of Air Tahiti (left), receives the keys to the aircraft from Stéphane Mayer, CEO of ATR.
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