Aer Lingus Regional ATR 72

[camino]

Hi,

I am not a pilot and just have some limited ppl training.

Lately I have found myself as a passanger on both Aer Arann under its own brand name & as Aer Lingus Regional in their ATR 72s, flying between the UK & Ireland.

I have been reading up on the safety record of the ATR 72s in relation to icing & have read that due to accidents a long time back that

" After a period of mandatory grounding, American Eagle and Delta Connection permanently stopped using the plane on temperate routes. Since the Eagle incidents, ATR had improved the anti-ice boots,[21] though ice-related incidents continued with the type, including a 2002 crash (see below) and a 2009 event where a smaller ATR-42 variant crashed during landing, in icy conditions.[22] Despite this, ATRs are still used in European markets, including the Nordic countries."

ATR 72 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atr_72)

I was curious to know if icing is still a particular issue with this aircraft? What do pilots think of this aircraft?

[Flying Beancounter]

No not particularly.
Ice protection on turboprops usually comes by way of electrically heated propellers and horns together with pneumatic deicing boots on the leading edges and engine intakes, etc.
Sadly the ATR got a reputation for "not being any good with icing" due to the Rose Lawn accident in the US in the mid-1980s. The reputation is not fully deserved as the accident was due mainly to poor procedures rather than the aircraft. However, ATR icing protection and procedures were tightened and as a result I would argue that the ATR is as good any other turbo-props in icing. In fact the Colgan (Continental Express) crash at Buffalo, NY nearly 25 years later demonstrated that the Dash 8-400 has the same problems in icing if not operated correctly (sadly the pilots were not really familiar with icing conditions and procedures).
Fortunately, you are travelling on ATRs operated by Aer Arann, a company operating to good standards with well trained pilots.
Turboprop pilots operating in Europe will be familiar with icing conditions and the necessary procedures (operating the anti-icing and de-icing equipment, using icing (higher) speeds for take-off, climb and approach and avoiding severe icing).
The ATR 72-500 is a good aircraft for the type of regional flying done by Aer Arann.
F-B