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PARIS, June 13 (Reuters) – The French-Italian ATR turboprops manufacturer is attacking downward shipments resulting from industrial delays, shortages of unsold aircraft and pilots, sources said. # 39; industry.
The turboprop, which belongs jointly to Airbus and Italian Leonardo, has only delivered a handful of aircraft in 2019, but is aiming for a recovery in the second half.
ATR, based in Toulouse, refused to give a figure for mid-year deliveries, but said it was confident of reaching its goal of matching the total transfer of 76 aircraft of the year last.
"Our market is very volatile and we are used to managing it well," said a spokeswoman.
ATR dominates the turboprop market, competing with the Q400 developed by Bombardier, recently acquired by Canadian manufacturer Viking Air, and the upcoming MA700 in China.
While the debate on the intensification of the environmental impact of aviation is becoming more intense, ATR aims to present at the Paris Air Show next week its 72- 600 passengers cleaner than regional jet aircraft, with a 40% reduction in emissions per trip.
Although the show is dominated by heavyweight competition, ATR says that one-third of the world's commercial airports depend solely on turboprops, which contribute to regional economic development.
However, in India, a fast growing market, ATR is struggling to deliver aircraft as quickly as it hoped, partly because of the difficulty of finding enough pilots for the leading IndiGo customer.
In 2017, ATR agreed to sell 50 ATR 72-600 aircraft, valued at more than $ 1.3 billion at list price, to the discount carrier.
In order to win one of the largest transactions in the turboprop sector, ATR has taken on the responsibility of recruiting pilots and instructors for IndiGo, which, like many Indian airlines, is facing a serious shortage, indicated these sources to Reuters.
"Indigo deliveries are progressing on a monthly basis," said the spokeswoman. "In addition, we are working with Indigo to address the pilot shortage and are working very closely with them on pilot instructors," she added.
IndiGo was not immediately available for comment.
The problem encountered during delivery is the latest indication of the cost of a worldwide shortage of pilots, as the number of air travel increases faster than the economy. In India trained captains are particularly rare.
ATR expects an annual average growth of 10.9% in the turboprop traffic from 50 to 70 seats in South Asia.
In addition to the problems of recruiting pilots, ATR has an indeterminate number of "white tails" or aircraft built but not sold, indicated the same sources. ATR declined to comment.
He is also struggling with some quality issues related to the delivery of fuselages from Italy, sources said. ATR stated that it did not comment on commercial or industrial problems.
Deliveries can have an impact on revenues and profits, as airlines pay most of the cost of an aircraft upon delivery. Analysts believe that ATR is an additional source of profit for Airbus and Leonardo, even though its margins are unpublished. (Report by Tim Hepher, Aditi Shah, edited by Kirsten Donovan)
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