ATR 42 or ATR 72: Which One to Lease for Your Network
The ATR 42 and ATR 72 share a family, a cockpit and most of their systems, so the choice between them looks simple: 50 seats or 70. In practice the larger aircraft is not always the cheaper one per seat, and the smaller one is not always easier to find. If you are leasing, the decision comes down to the load on your thinnest sector, the runways on your network and what the market can actually supply.
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This comparison uses the ATR 42-600 and ATR 72-600, the current production versions. Older -300, -320 and -500 aircraft follow the same broad pattern, and they are often what is offered on ACMI. Figures are rounded and vary with weight option and layout, so check them against the aircraft offered.
Seats
ATR 42-600: 46 to 50 seats.
ATR 72-600: typically 68 to 74 seats, with more in high density layouts.
The gap of around 20 seats is the core of the decision. An ATR 72 on a route that fills 40 seats carries the cost of a bigger aircraft with nothing to show for it. An ATR 42 on a route that fills 60 turns away ten people on every flight.
Range and speed
Both cruise at a similar speed, so block times hardly differ. ATR quotes about 725 nautical miles for the 42-600 with maximum passengers, and up to about 825 nautical miles for the 72-600. Neither is a long range aircraft. Check any long positioning flight or the longest sector in your network before you sign. If you need more range or speed, compare the Dash 8 Q400.
Runways
This is where the ATR 42 earns its place. ATR quotes about 1,100 metres for a 42-600 at maximum take-off weight at sea level. The 72-600 needs around 1,300 metres, and its maximum take-off weight is about 23 tonnes against 18.6 tonnes for the 42.
On hot days and at high elevation the gap matters more. A short strip that an ATR 42 can use with a full cabin may force an ATR 72 to leave passengers or cargo behind. Run the numbers for your airfield at your hottest time of day, not the brochure figure. If your strips are gravel or very short, also compare a Dash 8 or a Beech 1900D.
Cost per seat and cost per trip
The ATR 72 usually wins on cost per seat when it is full, because it spreads a modestly higher trip cost over about 20 more seats. The ATR 42 usually wins on cost per trip.
Take a typical month and ask two questions:
What is your average load per sector? Not the peak.
Would a lower trip cost let you add a frequency instead of flying one bigger aircraft?
Two daily flights on an ATR 42 can serve a market better than one on an ATR 72, and the lessee pays the fuel either way. On an ACMI lease the block hour rate and the monthly minimum matter just as much. Our guide to block hours, flight hours and cycles explains how short sectors change the sums.
Availability on the market
There are many more ATR 72s than ATR 42s in service, so on the ACMI and lease market the 72 is usually easier to find, in more layouts and with more operators to choose from. An ATR 42 may take longer to source, and you may have fewer options for a replacement aircraft when yours goes technical. Allow more lead time if your network really needs the smaller type.
Cargo
Both types exist as freighters, but ATR 72 freighter conversions are far more common and carry much more. If freight may be part of the programme, ATR 72 supply is broader. For a short programme with mixed loads, ask whether a quick change between passenger and cargo layouts is possible, and what it does to the rate.
Crew and maintenance
Pilots can move between the two types easily, and much of the maintenance and spares are shared. An operator flying both can swap one for the other at short notice, which is useful when demand changes by season. Ask what a substitution would cost before the lease starts, not after. Our post on what happens when an ACMI aircraft goes AOG lists the clauses to check.
A quick way to decide
Average load under about 45, or a short runway that limits weight? ATR 42.
Average load above about 50, on normal runways? ATR 72.
In between, with room for a second frequency? Price two ATR 42 flights against one ATR 72.
Need to start soon, with a backup aircraft? ATR 72, because supply is deeper.
Getting a quote
Tell us type, base and hours, and we come back with suitable options from operators. See the aircraft available on ACMI or read more about aircraft leasing.
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