French aircraft ATR claims issue in global supply chain due to slow aircraft deliveries

According to estimates made by French aircraft manufacturer ATR, the global supply chain issues that have plagued Indian airlines over the past few years are unlikely to disappear anytime soon.

The business anticipates that supply chain restrictions in the aviation ecosystem would gradually loosen until aircraft deliveries reach pre-COVID levels, which should only happen by 2027–2028.

ATR delivered 36 aircraft in 2023 compared to 68 in the year before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019.

“This year, (we are) aiming at 40-ish,” Jean Pierre, ATR’s head of commercial for Asia-Pacific mentioned in conversarion with Mint.

“A supply chain is not something that you switch on, switch off. It’s about being mindful and getting that back in line responsibly for our suppliers… it’s a fine balance,” he added.

The French manufacturer produces regional jets with turboprop engines, such as the 48–78 passenger ATR 42 and ATR 72 models. According to data from flight tracking website flightradar24, there are over 100 regional aircraft registered with scheduled Indian carriers in India, and ATR holds nearly a 70% market share.

Following the grounding of several of its aircraft due to Pratt & Whitney’s inability to provide a consistent supply of engines, Go First filed for bankruptcy in India.

“We don’t want to strain the supply chain. We have seen what happens when you do that in some of the programmes. We want to be very careful,” stated Pierre. “We want to be somewhere between 60-80 (aircraft per year) in the long run.”