AFTER 15 YEARS at the head of Franco-Italian regional-aircraft consortium ATR - now Aero International (Regional) (AI(R)) - Henri-Paul Puel is leaving the post to direct Aerospatiale maintenance subsidiary Sogerma. He will be replaced, by Patrick Gavin formerly Aerospatiale's director of industrial and technology strategy.
Puel was central to the successful sales performance of ATR and its long-awaited alliance with British Aerospace to create AI(R). He has consistently pushed for the new group to develop a new 70- to 100-seat regional jet.
Gavin has been close to the ATR programme since its inception, and was one of the original team, which launched the ATR 42. He was also senior vice-president of product support for the consortium in the early 1990s, before he rejoined Aerospatiale.
Source: Flight International
