[Seng Lim]

FInmeccanica, EADS jv ATR wins 360 mln usd order from Malaysia Airlines

MILAN (Thomson Financial) - ATR, the joint venture between Finmeccanica SpA unit Alenia Aeronautica and EADS, has signed a 360 mln usd contract to sell ATR 72-500 planes to Malaysia Airlines, Finmeccanica said.

The contract comprises the sale of 10 ATR 72-500s plus an option on a further 10 aircraft, the company said.

The contract is part of industrial cooperation between the governments of Italy and Malaysia, it said.

The contract was signed in Rome in the presence of Italian prime minister Romano Prodi and Malaysia's prime minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

In first half of 2007, ATR has sold 63 new planes, equalling the total orders in 2006, and bringing sales since ATR's launch to 900 planes, it said.

This is Malaysia Airlines' first purchase of ATRs, Finmeccanica added.

News links:
http://www.hemscott....=45709189679431
http://www.abcmoney....25200792812.htm

[Seth K]

Huh, you didn't see that coming.......................
So, this one goes to MASWings or Firefly or MAS?

This post has been edited by Seth K: 25 June 2007 - 10:43 PM

[Radzi]

This is news. But the Fokker 50s needs to be replaced fast. I guess due to commonality it will be for both airlines.

[Nuriman Ahmad]

So roughly when can we expect to see them on m'sian soil?

[Naim]

More details ...

June 25, 2007 23:03 PM

MAS Purchases 20 ATR 72-500s Aircraft For Firefly

ROME, June 25 (Bernama) -- Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and Avion de Transport Regional (ATR) today signed an agreement for the purchase of 20 ATR 72-500s turbo prop aircraft for MAS' subsidiary, Firefly.

The contract is worth about US$360 million, with a list price of about US$18.3 million per unit.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his Italian counterpart Romano Prodi witnessed the signing of the agreement at Villa Madama here. The leaders earlier had held bilateral talks.

Signing on behalf of MAS was its Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer Tengku Azmil Zahruddin Raja Abdul Aziz while ATR was represented by its Chairman of the Board, Filippo Bagnato.

Speaking to reporters later, Tengku Azmil Zahruddin said the contract was for the purchase of 10 72-seater ATR aircraft plus an option for another 10 aircraft.

"The purchase of the aircraft is for the use of Firefly which has gone into its expansion phase," he said.

Firefly, he said would be operating from its hubs in Penang, Subang, Johor Baharu and Kota Kinabalu.

Tengku Azmil Zahruddin said the first delivery of two to three of the ATR aircraft was expected in October next year.

The aircraft would eventually replace the two Fokker 50, which is now being operated by Firefly, he added.

ATR is jointly owned by Alenia Aeronautica (Finmeccanica) and EADS.

Finmeccanica in a statement released here said that this was the first time that the Malaysian national carrier was purchasing an ATR aircraft.

Its brand new ATR 72-500s fleet will enable the airline to open new routes across Malaysia, it said.

These aircraft will be equipped with the "Elegance" cabin, Light Emitting Diode (LED), In-Flight Entertainment (IFE) and ETOPS 120, as well as the latest technological innovations in passenger comfort, communications and navigation tools, it added.

-- BERNAMA

[Leo]

It a sign when berjaya air bought the aircraft last week ago. Haha so fast Malaysian government add another 10 more.

[Isaac]

MAS Purchases 20 ATR 72-500s Aircraft For Firefly

ROME, June 25 (Bernama) -- Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and Avion de Transport Regional (ATR) today signed an agreement for the purchase of 20 ATR 72-500s turbo prop aircraft for MAS' subsidiary, Firefly.

Firefly, he said would be operating from its hubs in Penang, Subang, Johor Baharu and Kota Kinabalu.

BKI ? How about MASWings then ? Is that mean there is a plan changed at MAS and MASWings has been scrapped ?

Finally, new short-haulers for intra-borneo flights

[Ignatius]

I really dislike it when they left out Kch Intl!!!!!!

[Seth K]

BKI ? How about MASWings then ? Is that mean there is a plan changed at MAS and MASWings has been scrapped ?

I think Firefly operating from/to BKI from/to other smaller cities in Peninsula(eg. KBR, PEN, KUA i think)/Phillipines/Indonesia Borneo(??). MASWings is just the rural service replacing FAX.

This post has been edited by Seth K: 25 June 2007 - 11:26 PM

[Adrian M]

I was hoping for Dash 8-Q400.... (for the underwing landing gear view outside the window) Bleh~~~ this is an utterly bitter news for me....

My Beloved F50s~~~~~~~~ NO~~~

[Pieter C.]

Good news for ATR and Firefly !!!

It's a great aircraft from the passenger's point of view...big news for me, though, Firefly will start operations from BKI

Glad to have flown the trusty Dutch lady between PEN and LGK recently

[Sandeep G]

Nice! Good job. Can't wait to see a picture of what these birds look like in the Firefly/MAS/MASWings livery.

[Jason K]

anyone hav any idea how the plane look like?---?>ATR 72-500 thanks

[Gavin Andrew David]

Wow the Wikipedia posting was quite accurate .

[S V Choong]

Adrian, I am glad that MAS is not purchasing the Dash 8. Having riding both of types in NZ and I think they are not as good as the ATR 72s.

[Seth K]

Wow the Wikipedia posting was quite accurate .

So we can expect the following then.........

* 10 Airbus A380-800
* 20 Boeing 747-8 I
* 25 Airbus A350 XWB 1000
* 50 Boeing 737-900ER
* 5 Airbus A320-200
* 10 Boeing 747-8F

although I found 5 airbus order and 20 747 quite odd.

[Kevin Teh]

So we can expect the following then.........

* 10 Airbus A380-800
* 20 Boeing 747-8 I
* 25 Airbus A350 XWB 1000
* 50 Boeing 737-900ER
* 5 Airbus A320-200
* 10 Boeing 747-8F

although I found 5 airbus order and 20 747 quite odd.

in this case....
20 787-8/9 will make more sense replacing the A330s. 747-8I order is unlikely to happen when A380 will likely replace the current 744s fleet.
25 350XWB to replace the T7 fleet will be quite reasonable

10 A380? i doubt they need it. 5 A320-200, compensation for the A380 delay?

my 2 cent

This post has been edited by Kevin Teh: 26 June 2007 - 01:44 AM

[FK Wong]

Looks like MAS is slowly gaining their momentum on purchasing theirs aircrafts.More to come end of this year.=)

[Andrew Ong]

News release from ATR:

ATR announces sale to Malaysia Airlines and reaches 900th aircraft ordered

ATR disclosed today the decision by Malaysia Airlines (MAS) to acquire a fleet of 10 ATR 72-500s plus options for 10 additional aircraft. The contract, valued at US $ 183 million, has been inked in the presence of His Excellence Abdullah Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia, and Romano Prodi, the Italian Prime Minister.

The aircraft are intended for the expansion of Firefly - subsidiary airline 100 % owned by MAS - which will establish its hubs in Penang, Subang, Yohoar Baharau, and Kota Kinabalu. The ATR aicraft will progressively replace the current Fokker 50 aircraft fleet of the airline.

These 72-seat aircraft will be equipped with the "Elegance" cabin, Light Emitting Diode (LED), Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) as well as the newest technological innovations in passenger comfort, communications and navigation tools. Deliveries will start in 2008.

With this deal, ATR reaches its 900th new aircraft sold (416 ATR 42s and 484 ATR 72s) since the beginning of the programme. This order also marks an outstanding year to-date, with 63 new aircraft sold in the first half of 2007. In six months, ATR has already reached the same quantity of total orders posted during 2006, which was also an outstanding performance for ATR. Since the beginning of the programme, ATR has delivered 730 aircraft (394 ATR 42s and 336 ATR 72s), and posts a current backlog of 170 aircraft.

The 500 series: New Generation aircraft

With its ATR 42-500 and ATR 72-500, ATR supplies state-of-the-art aircraft with jet-like comfort. The advanced six-blade propeller provides remarkably low noise levels. Low fuel burn and gaseous emissions contribute to make the ATR environment friendly. All ATR models are compliant with noise regulations and have a large margin with regard to Chapter IV (ICAO) noise regulations, effective 1st January 2006.

About MAS

Malaysia Airlines, the national carrier of Malaysia, is recognized as one of Asia's largest, flying more than 48,000 passengers to some 100 destinations across 6 continents everyday. The airline holds a lengthy record of service and best practices excellence, having received more than 100 awards in the last 10 years. The most notable ones include being the first airline to win the "World's Best Cabin Crew" by Skytrax UK consecutively from 2001 until 2004, "5-star airline" in 2005 and 2006, as well as No.1 for "Economy Class Onboard Excellence 2006" also by Skytrax UK. Under its new leadership, MAS has undergone a dramatic turnaround, which is providing the opportunity for Idris Jala, MAS CEO, to find new untapped market opportunities.

About ATR

Toulouse, Southern France-based regional aircraft manufacturer ATR is the world leader in the 50 to 74-seat turboprop market. In 2006, ATR posted a turnover of US $ 700 million, an increase of 30% compared to 2005. ATR is an equal partnership between Alenia Aeronautica (Finmeccanica group) and EADS.

Congrats to MAS on the order and the 900th ATR 72-500

[Tamizi Hj Tamby]

ATR 72-500...Not bad at all Although i'm disappointed that they didn't bought Dash-8 Q300/400,but looks like the F50 will end it's glorious career.