ATR has followed the lead of 50% owner Airbus and pushed back the service-entry target of an envisioned next-generation low-emission aircraft, citing technology maturity issues.
When it disclosed its proposed hybrid-electric Evo variant in 2022, the turboprop manufacturer had hoped to achieve service entry in 2030 for the model, which was to be powered by clean-sheet engines.
However, that date has now slipped to around 2035, senior vice-president of engineering Daniel Cuchet said on 12 February.
Airbus, which is a joint-venture partner in ATR alongside Leonardo, had earlier in February disclosed that its plans for a hydrogen-powered aircraft under the ZEROe project had slipped by five to 10 years based on technology readiness shortcomings.
ATR had been conducting a number of studies alongside suppliers into technologies that could be brought to the Evo, chiefly related to the propulsion system, with a goal of reducing fuel consumption 20-30%.
“We have done a reality check in 2024 with our engine manufacturer colleagues and partners and we see that to have a new engine was probably not realistic in terms of timeframes or performance,” Cuchet says.
Multiple engine suppliers – not just incumbent Pratt & Whitney Canada – engaged by ATR through a series of requests for information said it was “not realistic to think of [a clean-sheet engine] prior to at least 10 years”.
In addition, employing an all-new engine would mean “we would have to regain all the maturity steps… and customers would suffer from the low maturity of this clean-sheet engine”.
“I think we have made a good decision to come back to something more realistic and more-adapted to the market.”
The Evo will not use clean-sheet engine but a “big evolution of the engine”, says Cuchet, adding that a parallel-hybrid system will contribute to the 20% fuel-burn saving.
Although in the early feasibility stages, ATR had been seeking solutions from a variety of propulsion specialists. “Now we are only talking to one engine manufacturer,” says Cuchet, although he declines to say which one.
To meet the 2030 goal, ATR would have needed to make a launch decision in 2025, based on typical development timelines.
Alexis Vidal, senior vice-president commercial, says the work with its engine partners led the airframer to conclude that “with the maturity of the technologies we cannot commit to an imminent launch decision”.
“We have to adapt and face reality about what’s feasible and what’s not.”
But the delay may have the additional benefit of pushing ATR’s timeline into alignment with the EU-funded Clean Aviation initiative, which is looking to mature technologies for a next-generation regional aircraft for service entry around 2035.
Under Clean Aviation’s first phase, two projects were funded to work on hybrid-electric engine technologies.
Cuchet says the airframer has yet to decide whether to participate in the second phase, which also includes the “flight-test demonstration of hybrid-electric propulsion for regional aircraft”, likely using an ATR platform. The first of three calls for proposals will be issued shortly, according to Clean Aviation’s plans.
In the short-term, ATR will focus its engineering expertise on delivering operational enhancements to the in-service fleet, including by extending certain maintenance intervals and improving the corrosion resistance of some components.
Chief executive Nathalie Tarnaud Laude says the short-term focus reflects operators’ demands to “please target these pain points” and a company drive to ensure the existing portfolio “remains relevant for customers”.
Additionally, she stresses that the airframer sees no demand for a stretch of the current 70-seat ATR 72-600, which would have taken ATR into 90-seat territory.
That would potentially put the company into competition “with others that are maybe better” in that part of the market or have aircraft better optimised for a segment that demands longer stage lengths.
On top of this, the relatively small size of ATR – with just 1,390 employees – means “we have to focus the energy of our team on the right things”.
“We have to set ourselves parameters – we are not trying to do things that we cannot achieve,” she adds.
ATR saw strong sales growth last year, taking 56 orders against 40 the year before. Deliveries were flat year on year at 35, with a further aircraft complete but waiting to be handed over, compared with 36 shipments in 2023.
