Assuring Confidence in the ATR Cabin

Air travel is still the safest method of transportation.

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A lot has changed in recent months across the globe. As countries and governments shift into the recovery phase, it is a timely reminder of just how crucial the travel and tourism industry is to our connected world. Whether it is traversing wide-open plains or flying across mountain ranges, aviation has enabled us to travel to far-flung parts of the world and connect in new and exciting ways. Most importantly, air travel is the safest method of transport – and remains so today.

As governments, airports and airlines around the world are now looking together to return to flying, we are confident that new measures being put in place to protect travelers are sufficient and that passengers can feel as comfortable in our cabin as they always have been.

As the number one regional aircraft manufacturer, ATR supports this. Our aircraft are environmentally sustainable and essential to connect regional communities, rebuild damaged economies and ensure special services such as medical evacuations and cargo flights. Aviation is an essential service, and it is safe.

Measures to Boost Passenger Confidence

Strict Guidelines

To ensure a safe resumption of travel, ATR’s recommendations for operators are aligned with the International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) guidelines. These offer immediate and effective actions to boost passenger confidence, which is crucial for the industry to recover normal service levels. ATR supports that social distancing on the shorter hauls when all sanitary indications are implemented correctly does not give added protection. ATR wants to ensure that airlines can continue operating economically while passengers can be confident that necessary measures are being taken for their personal safety and security. ATR supports sanitary measures such as mandatory face masks, deeper cleaning and disinfection with a focus on high contact areas and temperature screenings to reduce the risks. If these measures are implemented, then other social distancing rules are no longer necessary.

ATR Aircraft = The Right Approach

Precautionary Measures

We encourage our operators to take further precautionary measures such as carefully choreographing the loading of their aircraft and adhering to sequenced boarding and disembarkation to minimise crowding. On ATR aircraft, boarding from the rear door minimises face-to-face interactions between passengers. The galley area located at the back is another advantage, which also minimises face-to-face interactions between passengers and the cabin crew.

Low Risk of Infection

Recent reports acknowledge that the risk of contamination on-board is low. A microbial risk study¹ from 2013 analysed the likelihood and spatial organisation of a disease transmission in a commercial aircraft. It found that the risk of infection to another passenger wearing a mask was around 1 in 100,000 in the less optimistic scenario.

ATR aircraft systems ensure that the air in the cabin is blown transversally and vertically. Keeping personal overhead ventilation on and pointed down contributes to further direct the flow up to the exhaust grills at foot level. The cycle allows a quick and total renewal of the cabin volume with fresh air coming exclusively from the outside after only 5 minutes.

Moving Forwards

The aviation industry has been hit hard by the current pandemic, but there is an opportunity for us now to move forwards. We should use this opportunity to reassure passengers of our commitment to safety and the environment. ATR aircraft is unrivalled in its economics and CO2 emissions advantage, which is important economically and environmentally for the future. The current situation already shows that the regional market is resilient. Post-Coronavirus, ATR will have an important role to play because our aircraft are often the only means to get fresh products to certain regions, to ferry people in and out of remote areas and to carry vital goods for example. This is why we need to support a safe return to the skies for aviation right now.

ATR is proud to be a sustainable aircraft manufacturer, with a deep commitment to making the world a better, more connected place.

ATR’s recommendations are available to our registered members on our ATR Active Support web platform.

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