The United Arab Emirates’ leasing firm books regional aircraft for the first time

On the occasion of the Singapore Airshow, the European turboprop aircraft manufacturer ATR and the United Arab Emirates’ leasing firm Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) today announced a contract for the purchase of 40 ATR 72-600s, which includes firm orders for 20 aircraft and options for 20 additional ones. DAE is the largest aviation leasing firm in the Middle East with an aircraft portfolio of approximately $3.3 billion comprised of B737s, B777s, A320s and A330s. Today’s deal represents DAE’s first order for regional aircraft. The 20 firm aircraft are scheduled to deliver between 2015 and 2018.

The contract is a major milestone in ATR’s recent history and underlines the increasing interest of leasing firms from all over the world in the ATR aircraft family. The ATR 72-600, equipped with new avionics suite and totally redesigned cabin interiors, has become in recent years the preferred regional aircraft below 90 seats for lessors and airlines operating short-haul networks.

Khalifa AlDaboos, Managing Director of DAE, declared: “We aim to diversify our portfolio and expand into regional aircraft to meet an increasing demand from airlines that are developing regional air connectivity. ATRs are today operated by some 190 carriers all over the world, and this is clearly providing us with many potential opportunities to place this new fleet of regional aircraft”. He added: The low operating cost of the ATR 72-600 makes it a compelling choice for operators that need to offer a differentiated product on short-haul sectors.”

Filippo Bagnato, Chief Executive Officer of ATR, declared: “We are pleased to receive DAE as a new customer and to further expand the list of leasing firms trusting ATR when thinking to develop their presence in regional aviation business. Thanks to the contribution of lessors, many more airlines can today benefit from the advantages of the newest ATR ‘-600 series’ aircraft, namely in terms of reduced fuel costs, most updated technologies, operating performance and world-class interior designs for passengers”. He added: “Our new partnership with DAE will further enhance the visibility of our brand and our products in the Middle East, where we expect to continue developing our presence in the very next years”.

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