Azul Linhas Aereas (AD/AZU) recently took delivery of an ATR72-600 turboprop – the most recent of four brand new ATR aircraft to be delivered to the airline in 2023. The Brazilian carrier operates a diverse fleet of 199 aircraft that includes products from most major aircraft manufacturers. This latest version of the popular French turboprop is powered by new PW127XT-M engines which promise fuel savings of up to 3% thanks to material enhancements to the compressors and turbines (amongst other improvements).

The aircraft, registration PR-YXB, made its way to Brazil’s Tancredo Neves International Airport (CNF) on a delivery flight from Toulouse (TLS) over the course of 72 hours, arriving on July 02 at 10:00UTC.

What route did the aircraft take?

Designed for short sectors up to 824 nautical miles, the ATR72-600 is incapable of positioning from Europe to South America in one trip. As such the aircraft made the 4,540 nautical mile journey in four legs that took the aircraft close to the edge of its operational range, likely made possible by minimal loading and the careful optimization of altitudes and routing.

The aircraft traveled via the Canary Islands and Cape Verde under the callsign AD9841, which is shared with other flights regularly made by Azul’s ATR and Embraer aircraft.

1. Leg 1 – Toulouse (TLS) to Arrecife (ACE) – June 30, 2023 
2. Leg 2 – Arrecife to Espargos (SID) – June 30, 2023
3. Leg 3 -Espargos to Natal (NAT) – July 01, 2023
4. Leg 4 – Natal to Belo Horizonte (CNF) – July 02, 2023

This aircraft was previously registered  under the french registry as F-WWEL. It is a common practice to register aircraft locally they are first built and flight tested. Flightradar24 data reveals that this registration has been used previously, and that this aircraft has most recently been completing test flights within France. In fact, we took a look inside this very aircraft at this year’s Paris Air Show.

Despite being a small aircraft, the flight deck is notably spacious and of a similar look and feel to a typical Airbus narrowbody. This would likely make for a more comfortable environment for the flight crew during long delivery flights. The aircraft has 48 seats with a comfortable 30 inch seat pitch. ATR have also designed larger overhead bins that guarantee one full sized cabin suitcase per passenger.

What’s next for PR-YXB?

PR-XYB is expected to begin commercial operations this month and will be joined by the airline’s fourth and final new ATR72, PR-XYC, in August 2023.

Cover image: Matteo Generoso, JetPhotos