India is so dynamic and has so much promise for tomorrow…

Exclusive Interview:

For ATR, India is one of the most important market and it projects to have additional 50-150 aircraft in next decade in this region. In an exclusive interview, Jean Pierre Clercin, Head of commercial, ATR,APAC Region, shared his thoughts on various perspectives with Vishal Kashyap, Managing Editor, Aviation World. Excerpts…

What is the current outlook of ATR for the Indian market in terms of number of orders and focus for the future as well?
Asia Pacific is our largest market today and of course in the South Asia in particular I mean is coming forward and its going to be the largest one. If you look at our customer base in India, we have IndiGo that has today 45 aircraft that should come up to 50 this year. We have Alliance Air that has 20 ATR including 2 ATR 42 and then we have a newcomer called Fly91 that’s out of Goa and that has taken 2 aircraft from a leasing company based out of Dubai. So today, if you look at the position, there will be over 70 aircraft within the next 12 months.

What makes ATR perfect fit for regional connectivity both in terms of operations and economics?
So there are a few things. I think first, the aircraft in terms of its capacity for takeoff and landing can actually operate out of very simple runways and airports. It doesn’t require a lot of GSE to maintain. I mean, people can embark, disembark from the stairs. There is a built-in, if you want, power unit. It’s very independent in that sense and you can land and take off on runways of down to 1200 meters at full load. Of course, it depends on temperature and this kind of things. But I mean, that’s the ballpark.

And of course, the ATR 42 has even better performance. It’s actually right above 1000 meters. And you probably heard we have this 42-600 STOL, that’s going to come up into service next year, which will be able to operate on the runway down to 800 meters.

So if you look at the number of airports in India, but worldwide, I mean, yes, you have the big ones like the Delhi, the Mumbai, the Singapore, but then you have a lot of smaller airports. The worldwide traffic of 95% is concentrated in 5% of the bigger airports. So it means that there is 95% of the airports that only carry 5% of the traffic and usually can go. So that’s the first part that you can access these small runways in these small communities.

The other part, of course, is that it’s good to have a capable aircraft, but it has to be, I would say, economically effective to be able to deliver the right customers because the people in those communities don’t necessarily have millions of dollars to pay, you know, in airfares. And so the aircraft, the ATR, is very frugal in terms of fuel burn. For instance, it has a very-very low cost base of operation. If you compare with similar regional jets, the ATR burns 45% less fuel than the original jets of the same category.

With the obsession we have in delivering a good cost base, an excellent aircraft for airlines to be able to make a profit, but it can also serve the communities in the country. I think this is why it was so widespread and we’ve been in India now for more than 20 years.

India is always been an important part of our markets. What’s been very interesting, I find is that you have a government that is extremely inspired. Today, the country is developing so fast that you need to develop more effective connectivity, and the vision that the government had with the VGF and the UDAN scheme supports that. The fact that the country has the rights to go around fast and we fit in that because we have the perfect products to serve those communities. It’s affordable and is easy to operate.

Fly91 to start flights in India with ATR-72 aircraft

Why still only scheduled operators are successful in RCS UDAN scheme and not NSOPs in India?
Yes, the reason why I think because what happens in this segment of the market is that traditionally small players come into it but they are all afraid to start a route. If you’re a small player and you put an aircraft and say, okay, I think there’s going to be market there. And then you don’t find your market, you’re dead!

What I think is very smart from the government is that they say, I’m going to help you with the risk. Not, forever, but for three years. Then it works and the operator stands on its own feet and it works and keeps on working. It’s not like they’re giving or subsidizing but they are taking other risks. And I think this is where the market is so vibrant today in India. And I think for me it’s the benchmark and other countries should look at.

This is probably why India is so dynamic and has so much promise for tomorrow. Because, you have very smart people pushing the right policies. Courageous entrepreneurs and that makes actually this country and the place to be in aviation today.

What numbers of aircraft orders you are projecting from India and what will be delivery schedule?
In terms of order in India, we assess that over the next 10 years, 50 to 150 additional aircraft coming up in the country. So, that’s the official forecast. But, I do believe looking into the energy even 150 may be smaller.

Apart from India which is your other important market?
In terms of size it’s a bit deceptive because size is not necessarily the main story. I think growth is the main story. So, today, the biggest market for ATR is Indonesia. There is about a hundred aircraft actually over there. And second will be Brazil and India would have about the same level. But if you ask me, actually, I mean, India will soon become the biggest one.

IndiGo is the largest operator of ATR in India with 45 aircraft used for RCS UDAN service

What steps are being towards SAF in the ATR aircraft?
It’s really about serving communities and so we have a strong social mandate, but we have also a strong sustainability mandate as well. And so, our aircraft from the onset, because of this low fuel burn, has an extremely low carbon footprint compared to others. And so, that’s already a massive actually saving. The possibility we have when it comes to SAF is actually a great opportunity for us and we have been looking at SAF already for a while before it became the buzzword and this kind of things. We have been working since the previous year before to prepare 100% SAF flight. Usually, the blend is only a few percent as its said 100%, actually on one engine. We’re the first aircraft to do 100% SAF on both commercial aircraft and 100% SAF flight. And so, we are actually really at the forefront. I mean, because we believe that this is a great way to decarbonise the industry.

And so, we are aiming at, you know, getting it certified fully for commercial services by next year. So, of course, it depends on the authorities. So, it is something that we’re discussing with them.Of course, availability of SAF is the main topic today because SAF production is not at the level of the consumption yet. So, all that actually is something that we are exploring and discussing with the ecosystem at large.

Alliance Air operates 20 ATR including 2 ATR 42-600

How you are managing the delivery related issues  with the operators?
When you buy an aircraft, you cannot get it tomorrow. It’s not like Amazon? You need to manufacture it, and so there are lead times involved in that. So, if you buy an aircraft from ATR today, then within the next couple of years, you will get it which is typical. And that’s because we keep some flexibility in terms of being able to sell to customers. Now, if you want 200 aircraft within the next two years, difficult because we don’t manufacture so many aircraft.

We’ve been working very closely with our suppliers to make sure that we limit the impact to that. So, the supply chain impact, actually, is really starting to come down, actually, at the moment.