Background

By 2050, global airline passenger numbers are expected to increase nearly fivefold from 2021 levels, reaching over 10 billion passengers per year. A large percentage of this growth is projected to occur in the regional aircraft segment, which will require over 2,450 new turboprop-category aircraft, mostly in Asia—a highly cost-sensitive market. Currently, the available options on the market are the ATR72 and Dash-8 Q400 in the 70-80 seat bracket, and the ATR42 and Daher Do 328eco in the 30-50 seat bracket. All these options consist of aerodynamically aged aircraft with significant room for improvement and are generally not well regarded by customers due to their loud noise, low comfort, and propeller-based design, which is commonly seen as old, outdated, and less safe than jet aircraft. Additionally, these three suppliers won’t be able to cater to all of this demand, necessitating the development of new solutions. Therefore, we aim to find solutions that are not only technologically superior but also take customer preferences into account.