OREANDA-NEWS. May 05, 2011. In an festive celebration in Toulouse, France, UTair Aviation received the first of an expected 20 ATR 72-500 aircraft to be delivered under contract in the period from 2011-2012. The completed delivery will bring the number of this type of aircraft in the UTair fleet to 37 and make UTair the largest operator of ATR aircraft in Europe and one of the largest in the world.

“We were the first operator of the brand-new ATR 72-500 aircraft in Russia and are delighted to offer our passengers an exceptional level of comfort when flying on these planes,'' said UTair CEO Andrei Martirosov during the ceremony. ''The ATR 72-500 optimally combines excellent flight performance and the lowest operating and maintenance costs".

Filippo Bagniato, Executive Director of ATR, commented that "Russia and CIS countries provide us with good business opportunities, expanding the network of regional air transportation. The contract for delivery of 20 ATR 72-500 aircraft to UTair certainly plays an important role in strengthening of our market position in these countries".

According to the delivery schedule, the number of new ATR 72-500 aircraft in the UTair fleet will reach 14 in 2011.

UTair is one of four leading passenger carriers in the CIS and Baltic countries and has the most extensive route network of all carriers. According to the UTair operational forecast for 2011, the airline expects to transport more than 7 million passengers this year. More than 100 fixed wing aircraft are involved in realizing the company’s operations program.

ATR is the world's leading manufacturer of turboprop regional aircraft. The ATR aircraft manufacturing consortium was founded in 1981 by Aerospatiale (now EADS, France) and Aeritalia (now Alenia Aeronautica, Italy).