ATR Delivers First Turboprop Aircraft with In-Flight Entertainment System and LED

(Toulouse, 4th January 2007) -- Kingfisher Airlines, India's fastest growing airline, and ATR today announced the delivery of the world's first turboprop aircraft facilitating In-flight entertainment system (IFE). The aircraft is the sixth ATR 72-500 delivered to Kingfisher Airlines. All the ATR aircraft delivered to the airline will be equipped with this system. This aircraft is also the first turboprop to be equipped with Light Emitting Diode in the whole cabin.

Now the Indian air traveler flying between smaller cities connected by Kingfisher Airlines' ATR aircraft service can also enjoy unlimited in-flight entertainment. The new ATR aircraft being inducted into the fleet on 4th of January will have 17 LCD colour screens spread throughout the cabin. The TV screens operate on a drop down mechanism. No headphones or earphones are required since the audio comes through overhead speakers.

Added Mr. Hitesh Patel, Executive Vice President, Kingfisher Airlines Limited, "Kingfisher Airlines has several firsts to its credit since its inception. We have always believed in providing the best to our guests. Kingfisher Airlines connects several smaller cities across the country with its ATR72-500 aircraft fleet. The initiative of facilitating IFE onboard our ATR fleet has also been made possible due to our conviction as well as the technical prowess of both the Kingfisher Airlines team as well as that of ATR. It is a landmark achievement, and we are proud to be the owners of the first ever IFE equipped ATR aircraft in the world. Now guests flying the Good Times with Kingfisher Airlines on the ATR routes also will be able to enjoy fabulous IFE service."

The new IFE, proposed as an option both in ATR 42-500 and ATR 72-500, was certified last November and can be installed on new aircraft during production or also retrofitted on aircraft already delivered. The LED was certified in December and becomes standard in the new aircraft delivered by ATR. Responding to the airlines needs, ATR will offer better standards of quality and service to passengers according to the ATR principles of high comfort.

Carmine Orsi, VP Engineering, stated: "Both IFE and LED represent a new step forward in the continuous process of innovation and improvements developed by ATR and will allow our operators to offer an enhanced product to their passengers. Furthermore, the In-Flight Entertainment system, displayed for the first time in the Paris Airshow 2005, may be used as an additional source of revenue generation through advertising, promotion and services".

About LED
The Light Emitting Diode (LED) represents a new step forward of the lighting technology inside the aircraft and is provided by the Italy-based Sirio Panel. Consisting on four thin bars of light (two located along the central ceiling of the cabin and one on each lateral, over the windows), the LED allows reducing the costs of lighting inside the aircraft as well as varying the light intensity. In addition, the lighting by LED is slightly less weighty than the one used currently by the ATR operators.

About IFE
The In-Flight Entertainment (IFE), provided by France-based Vision Systems, will allow the passengers to see DVD, to listen to CD as well as to receive commercial adverts and messages from the attendants or the pilot. The LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) video screens (of 126,7mm x 92,7mm and 0,2 Kg weight) will be installed in a case integrated into the PSU area. It will be spaced every two or three seat rows, depending on the airline needs, along both sides of the passenger cabin. Located at the rear, a control panel allows to select the program that will be displayed throughout the entire cabin. As an optional feature, to be developed later, the system will be capable of displaying live-views from inside or outside the aircraft.

Source : ATR

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