Indonesia's Lion Group has cemented itself as ATR's largest customer as it agreed to purchase 40 more turboprops, taking its total to 100 from the European airframer.
It sealed the order in Rome, in the presence of Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi.
Deliveries of the additional ATR 72-600s, powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PW127 engines, will run from 2017 to 2019.
They will be used to meet demand for further regional capacity over the next five years.
Lion Group chairman Rusdi Kirana, speaking in Rome, described the -600 series as "reliable" and "very competitive".
"Our relationship [with ATR] is getting better and better – although it's like husband and wife sometimes," he says.
He admits he is "not an engineer, just a businessman" and says that ATR has shown itself to be "really serious" in assisting the carrier in operating the type.
Forty-three ATRs are already in operation with Lion Group subsidiaries. Indonesia's Wings Air has 32, Malindo Air of Malaysia has 10, and a single aircraft operates for Thai Lion Air.
Kirana expects Wings Air to account for around 60 of the 100 ATRs being taken. He adds that some will be reserved for new airline operations the company is exploring.
ATR chief Patrick de Castelbajac acknowledges that Lion is a "very demanding" customer but notes that the carrier's low-cost business model is "proposing solutions that are quite unique".
He adds that the development of the operator's facilities, particularly its maintenance division, is "very impressive".
"I think what Lion Air is planning in terms of MRO is going to be one of the [most significant] in the world," says de Castelbajac.
"They're not just planning for tomorrow but for the day after tomorrow."
Italian export credit agency SACE has simultaneously approved a $157 million credit line supporting the purchase of 15 previous Lion ATRs.
SACE, which operates in partnership with France's COFACE, says the agreement brings to 37 the number of ATRs it is backing for the Indonesian operator.
"Italy's success on international markets relies on adequate export credit support, which is crucial to reinforce our competitiveness worldwide," says SACE chief Alessandro Castellano.
ATR puts its order total this year at 155, just shy of its record figure of 157.
It aims to deliver over 80 aircraft this year, following a production expansion which has trebled the size of its facilities since 2007, and expects around 95 deliveries next year. The airframer has some 300 aircraft on backlog and, given its expectations on option conversions, it estimates it has stockpiled over four years' worth of production.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
