ATR boosted its global customer support network in South America this week, announcing a series of deals involving maintenance and logistics. These included a contract to establish a new warehouse in Sao Paulo, Brazil, with Airbus Helicopters subsidiary Helibras. The new center is the sixth of its type for ATR, which already operates spare parts centers in Paris, Miami, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Auckland, New Zealand. 

Scheduled for opening by the end of this month, the new warehouse will carry a stock of spare parts including line replaceable units (LRUs) in direct support of its global maintenance agreements (GMA) with its Brazilian customers. In Miami, ATR signed a contract with Brazilian airline Azul to renew the global maintenance of the carrier’s nearly 60-strong fleet of ATR 72-600s and -500s. That deal, announced at this week's MRO Americas show, lasts for five years and covers a provision of a stock of mainly LRUs. The agreement also includes the management of repairs of the parts and restocking them through a pool, as well as stock and repair service for propeller blades and landing gear.

Separately on Wednesday, ATR and Brazilian MRO specialist TAP Maintenance and Engineering announced a partnership under which TAP M&E has joined the network of maintenance centers recommended by ATR while ATR has chosen TAP M&E as its first spare parts repair center in Brazil for support of its maintenance contracts with ATR operators.

The deal establishes ATR’s first approved MRO center in Latin America. The turboprop manufacturer has already signed similar agreements with Fokker Services in Singapore, Rheinland Air Service in Germany and Atlantic Air Industries in France.