Australian airline launches contest to replace Bombardier Dash 8s but ATR admits race could be skewed
Turboprop manufacturers are preparing for one of the most hotly contested sales campaigns for several years as Qantas seeks bids to replace its Bombardier Dash 8 fleet.
The Australian flag carrier operates around 30 Dash 8s on regional services throughout Australia, and issued a request for proposals (RFP) earlier this month to ATR and Bombardier for the supply of 50- to 70-seat aircraft to replace them. The deal is expected to be finalised quickly to allow deliveries to begin next year.
ATR senior vice-president Paolo Revelli-Beaumont confirms ATR has been invited to bid for the deal, but concedes that the installed fleet of Bombardier aircraft will make the competition with its Canadian rival's Dash 8 Q Series "tough".
Toulouse based ATR, a company owned jointly by Alenia Aeronautica and EADS, says that it has been hurt by the effects of the Iraq war and SARS, and has taken just two new orders this year - ATR 42-500s for delivery to Air Tahiti in December this year and June 2004. It has also lost five planned 2003 deliveries, following the collapse of Algerian carrier Khalifa. However it remains confident that it will reach its target of selling 20 new ATRs this year.
The manufacturer has placed 16 secondhand ATRs so far in 2003 - about half the target set for the entire year. A new Indian regional airline - Air Deccan - is taking four secondhand ATR 42-320s this year which will be used on services in the south of the subcontinent.
Source: Flight International
