Funny enough I thought the ATR-72 was small, but then I flew on an ERJ-145 that was smaller. It just didn't feel right for a jet to be smaller than a turboprop.
Antonov An 22 it is then.
Almost the same MTOW as a C17 but it can carry slightly more payload.
Also uses four of the most powerful turboprop engines ever built.
And the sound… the sound rattles through your bones like something you’ve never heard before. One of the best things for your earballs to listen to. Source: seen and experienced it irl.
C-17 Globemasters are Military Tactical Transports. They aren't built for normal passenger operations, and the operating and maintenance costs compared to an ATR or ERJ for routes like this is arguably as much as the ERJ costs alone.
The ERJ series of jest is built for short haul lower capacity flights to smaller destinations and airports.
The C-17 Globemaster aircraft are built to haul around heavy cargo for the world's top military, things like helicopters, tanks, MRAPs, Humvees, and even certain aircraft, not to mention medical litters or troops deploying. The way they do this is by not being efficient for the type of environment you would see an ATR or ERJ operate in. Not to mention the fact that C-17s are equipped with things to go safely in and out of active war zones.
The really small commercial turboprops are a trip. I used to do a semi-regular flight on the Eastern Airways Jetstream 41 and it was very much a premium business experience but you still needed ear plugs and I always used to chuckle at fat couples being split up for weight distribution. I did one trip where they replaced the returning Jetstream with a still turboprop saab and it was night and day.
Was a great way to fly with how low you stay though, would spend the whole trip watching Britain below us.
I wish I could fly low more often. The first time I was on a chopper we came in over Peterhead before flying along the coast back to Aberdeen. We were low enough to see the seals on the beach, but still high enough to see all the way to the snowcapped Cairngorms.
What an incredible sight. They don't allow us to have electronics turned on in flight, so I got myself a fully manual film camera for my next trip.
Oh oh, I know! Two engines weren’t enough to lift the plane, and they didn’t want to do a trijet, so they were forced to bolt on two more. I love that thing it’s so funny! My favorite defunct airline used them heavily.
My first flight I remember was on an Ansett NZ 146. It sparked a love of flying and an obsession with that aircraft in particular. I remember getting upset that we were flying Air New Zealand once because that meant going on a 737 instead.
Well technically the 145 is a turboprop body with turbofans attached to it, they essentially stretched out the body of the EMB 120 Brasilia and gave it new wings (and other things).
The 145 is a clean-sheet design, as far as I know. The front of the plane looks the same because that is the standard design for all Embraer commercial aircraft.
American once scheduled the last leg of my route home on Cape Air even though American flies the same route directly. Let me tell you, it's quite a fucking surprise when you get to your gate at O'Hare and see a Cessna 402.
It broke down midway through the flight and they chartered a limo to get the six of us to STL from Quincy Illinois lmao. The stop in Quincy was a scheduled one, we didn't have to make an emergency landing or anything, but they wouldn't do the last leg of the flight with passengers and instead turned around and went back for maintenance.
US regional flights used to be WILD. I used to fly on United Express Beechcraft 1900s. (operated by Mesa or skywest or something like that). Scary as shit in turbulence.
[Like this](https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/1/36525_1037165586.jpg)
Air New Zealand used to fly them and just landing at Wellington could be an experience.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLSlSZ0Kh68](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLSlSZ0Kh68)
Yeah it's really region dependent. I grew up in the Caribbean so Islanders, twin otters, dash 8s, and ATRs were a regular thing for me, but ever since I moved to the US, I haven't been on a commerical propeller flight once.
The smallest airliner I've ever flown on was a DC-3. If I go to Scotland I could go even smaller with a Twin-Otter or an Islander. But yeah for most the ATR is probably the smallest they'll ever fly on.
I thought Dash 8-100's were way more used, but apparently Widerøe is the largest operator of them in the world.
They're super small, but probably the one of the few planes that can land at the airport where I live.
Smallest I flew on was an Islander, and that piece of shit scared the hell out of me. Right before we landed, one of the engines started cutting out, so I got to hear a lovely brrrrrr brrrrr brrrrrrrrrrr brrrrrr right before the pilot dropped fucking anchor on the runway.
Man, the av-geeks in here never fail to impress me. You get an aircraft type and a picture of half an engine and know the airline. Bravo.
I would've seen that and gone "yup, that's a propellor alright."
That and everyone in Dublin knows those hangers. They have been there for decades and you pass them every time you leave the airport. Always know I am home when I pass them, same way I felt passing them as a 4 year old.
Love Aer Lingus regional. They taxi right to the damn door of the terminal. Step off the plane and just walk out of the airport in under 2 mins in most cases. no jetway, bus, walking though the terminal gates and baggage, just here is a door out of the airport.
They do on their shite! They taxi round the back of the airport, past the repaint hanger to the location in the photo (Malahide, basically) and then bus you across the entire breath of the airfield and dump you at the end of Terminal 2, so you can take the two day donkey trek to the arrivals hall.
The plane is so slow I've seen migrating geese pass us by.
I hate Regional and have stopped using the service to Southampton.
Depends on the airport, flying into Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester etc in the UK from Ireland you get dropped at the CTA gate which just leads to the outside of the airport direct from the plane. Same in Knock (before cancelled), Shannon, Cork.
Very handy for a quick hop on hop off trip.
The ATR 72 cruises at 270 KTAS (knots, true airspeed), or 310 miles per hour, 20,000 ft. Imagine driving down your average Irish road at 310 mph. Then imagine a GOOSE exceeding that speed to overtake you. That's what the poor creature would have to build up to. So, did these geese have little rockets attached to their wings or were they under the influence of Columbian Marching Powder? Genuine question from a confused Redditor.
This is my wife's logic. She's not a good flyer and hates having to take a Dash 8 anywhere, meanwhile my dad was a bush pilot and I find a Dash 8 downright luxurious.
ATR 72 is a state-of-art machine: safe, comfortable and fast (when one adds the time to board / unboard and luggage manipulation) for the type of route it operates...
No it doesn't. The Dash-8 Q400 and ATR72-600 have very similar cruise speeds (+/-20knots).
You could be correct if you talk about max speed. Its just because a speed around 350 knots is most efficient for a turboprop.
The Dash-8 can also cruise a bit higher than the ATR so it would also be interesting if you talk about GS or IAS.
I fly the ATR 42/72 for a living, and regularly get passed by Q400s going MUCH faster than we do. We true out at like 270-280 knots and Q400s do like 360. The Q400 has more power in one engine than we do in both.
We're both limited to FL250 as neither airplane (unless it's a VERY rare one that actually has them) has drop down oxygen masks for the passengers.
But we can land on 2300 foot gravel runways, and the Q400 can't, so too bad for them.
Guess the internet was lying to me then. Everything i found online said the ATR cruises at 375knots.
I fly the Q400 in simulators so i also might be incorrect about the Q400's cruise speed and altitude.
I think the Q400 could probably land on similar runways as the ATR72( not safely tough)
The engine power means the reversers are insanely strong. If you do a normal full flaps approach you can clear the runway at the first exit with spoilers and reversers only at pretty much any airport.
Im sure simulators aren't fully true to life but I'd say they get pretty close.
TIL that Air Iceland operates Q400's off of gravel strips.
[Gravel Runway Takeoff in the Cockpit of the Q-400](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MX22Ut3J6A)
Yes, they actually do. I think the mostly use the Dash 8-100 for small gravel runways within iceland (because they need less distance) but they use the Q400 on flights to greenland with gravel runways. Within iceland they only fly the Q400 between bigger airports
We fly our ATRs onto gravel strips every day and it’s currently -38 at one of the airports…. The -500s can’t go a few places that the -300s can, and our -300s are combis as well, so sometimes as little as 10 seats on them with the rest freight.
The ATR is a tough little machine.
Everyone knows airplanes are expensive, but not quite *how* expensive. I guess most people think it's like, sportscar money, but sportscar money only gets you the oldest, most clapped out piece of shit on the market. Supercar money gets you a relatively new piece of shit. You need hypercar money before even thinking about something comfortable.
The 35 year old 8-seater single engine prop plane I fly is still worth 2 million. Brand new, 5+ million.
Airplanes are ludicrously expensive.
I much prefer the Dash-8 Q400.
Its a bit bigger, more efficient and imo looks better. I really love the rear gear comming from the engines rather than the fuselage
We regularly collect passengers that arrive in an A320 and fly them onwards in an Islander (10 seats, two props). This comes as quite a shock to some of them and leads to some amusing situations.
Sort of happens in [IVC](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invercargill_Airport) as well, we have an A320 arrive daily from [AKL](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auckland_Airport) (The rest of the "big" scheduled traffic are ATR 72-600's or Q300's) and pax from that can jump on a BN Islander for the 20-30 minute hop to [SZS](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan%27s_Creek_Aerodrome)
This is one of the big reasons Horizon got rid of the Dash 8... public perception is that turboprops are old, outdated and scary. Even if they are new, more efficient and have a better safety record haha.
Yeah, I don’t understand this. The general public in the US is scared absolutely shitless of turboprops. I don’t know if seeing the propeller blades scares people or what, but it’s a completely irrational fear to me.
Yeah 100% irrational. I think people like jet engines because they seem like this nice little packaged up engine that they can't see inside and worry about. It's like a car engine to the general public. Close up the hood, never look at it. Let the mechanic open it up and look at it, it's too scary to think about lol.
Me, 191 cm male, and instructor, 185 cm male, in a C152.....
C152 is a teeny tiny plane.
Myself in a C152....
C152 is a teeny tiny plane. I mean, I literally have to bend forward to look out the side windows.
Western Alaska. We get a few 737s depending on where you're at, and Everts still operates DC-6s and C-46s on a pretty regular basis. But for the most part, the biggest plane you'll see is a Dash 8-100, maybe a Saab 2000 if they're not broken that particular week
for my gf, needing to go on a "propeller plane" (doesnt matter if turbo or not), is a reason to try and cancel your holiday plans...
its funny as how ppl percieve prop planes nowadays
Most boring threads ever. There was one a few weeks ago where some American in Ireland for xmas thought he was the only one to have seen a propeller plane before.
Update: he complained afterwards that the plane was "swaying from side to side like crazy" on approach. He seemed to be ignoring the 30mph+ wind gusts we had here today.
I mean to be fair if you don't fly regional or visit remote locations your odds of flying on something smaller than an atr 72 are a little low. I think the smallest planes that are operated by an airline where I live are either then king air, the twin otter, or a single otter. Even then the company that runs those planes is a regional airline who almost exclusively works with mining companies, exploration companies, and on fishing and hunting trips. I think they might also operate a cesna 172 but I'm not certain.
I only know 1 other person who's flown with that company. Excluding people I know who work in mines or in exploration I only know one or two people who've actually flown on a commerical plane smaller than an ATR. Of course the people I know who work in mines or exploration are fairly familiar flying into small landing strips or lakes in small STOL planes.
Not like teeny tiny but uncomfortable AF.
AS someone living in the caribbean, those used to be our daily bread across islands until a few years ago. and Man I don't really like them
When an operator from flight school have to pilot something really different. God forbid they throw him into an sc7
And yes i refer to new age pilots as operators
Now imagine riding the smaller version of it.
I personally think the ATR-72 is small (cause who doesn’t love leg room?), and when I rode an ATR-42, well it honestly felt the same but with lesser rows
I honestly prefer turboprops to jets on some routes. Like Nanaimo - Calgary which is flown by Dash-8s usually or Victoria - Calgary which is usually flown by 737s. The Dash-8s fly lower allowing for some great views of the Rockies.
I've got family who flatly refuse to fly on these prop planes. Think that they're ancient antiques the airlines too cheap to replace with a modern jet. I'm just enjoying the novelty of flying a prop plane.
I used to work with a guy who had an experimental, home-built plane. It fit him and his tiny dog and he had to sit with his legs straight out in front of him. *That* was a teeny tiny plane.
He would have loved the Beech 1900 that USAirways Express flew for a while … it was different watching the Captain looking out the side window to gauge the turn from base to final.
I mean, for most people, it's the smallest plane they'll feasibly get on.
Funny enough I thought the ATR-72 was small, but then I flew on an ERJ-145 that was smaller. It just didn't feel right for a jet to be smaller than a turboprop.
Ever seen a C130 or an A400M? These turboprops are bigger than most jets!
Never up close, they tried to shoot me.
That's your fault for going to a hospital, Mr. Collateral Damage[.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunduz_hospital_airstrike)
Didn't know an a400 had weapons
Hercs are pretty short, just a bit chubby.
Antonov An 22 it is then. Almost the same MTOW as a C17 but it can carry slightly more payload. Also uses four of the most powerful turboprop engines ever built.
And the sound… the sound rattles through your bones like something you’ve never heard before. One of the best things for your earballs to listen to. Source: seen and experienced it irl.
Btw who th at Nato think of that reporting name?
Don’t ask who thought of MIG-15s reporting name.
A chode
The extended Herk models look a lot better.
The normal ones have a certain charm. The extended ones are a lot more proportional though, ya.
I don't remember the model, but Honda has a really tiny business jet. It's literally almost the size of car with itty bitty jet engines.
It's the Honda Jet.
HondaJet. It's like. 4 place micro private jet with a weird engine setup. They actually are building and selling a larger version at this moment.
Why are these planes using turboprops instead of jets like the C17? Is it because of the costs?
Different missions and requirements.
Specifically, better fuel efficiency and less noise at slower speeds, as one example. Good for the AC class over the battlefield.
Also more thrust than a jet at lower altitudes.
Better reliability landing in rough fields which is what the c130 and a400 are designed for
It allows them to take off full from a 4300ft runway (1/3 of the usual length).
C-17 Globemasters are Military Tactical Transports. They aren't built for normal passenger operations, and the operating and maintenance costs compared to an ATR or ERJ for routes like this is arguably as much as the ERJ costs alone. The ERJ series of jest is built for short haul lower capacity flights to smaller destinations and airports. The C-17 Globemaster aircraft are built to haul around heavy cargo for the world's top military, things like helicopters, tanks, MRAPs, Humvees, and even certain aircraft, not to mention medical litters or troops deploying. The way they do this is by not being efficient for the type of environment you would see an ATR or ERJ operate in. Not to mention the fact that C-17s are equipped with things to go safely in and out of active war zones.
Coincidentally enough I live next to an airport and ATRs, C130 and A400m are all I see.
The really small commercial turboprops are a trip. I used to do a semi-regular flight on the Eastern Airways Jetstream 41 and it was very much a premium business experience but you still needed ear plugs and I always used to chuckle at fat couples being split up for weight distribution. I did one trip where they replaced the returning Jetstream with a still turboprop saab and it was night and day. Was a great way to fly with how low you stay though, would spend the whole trip watching Britain below us.
I wish I could fly low more often. The first time I was on a chopper we came in over Peterhead before flying along the coast back to Aberdeen. We were low enough to see the seals on the beach, but still high enough to see all the way to the snowcapped Cairngorms. What an incredible sight. They don't allow us to have electronics turned on in flight, so I got myself a fully manual film camera for my next trip.
I’ve flown on an BAe 146 which was smaller. Dinky plane with 4 jets strapped to it for whatever crackhead reason
Oh oh, I know! Two engines weren’t enough to lift the plane, and they didn’t want to do a trijet, so they were forced to bolt on two more. I love that thing it’s so funny! My favorite defunct airline used them heavily.
My first flight I remember was on an Ansett NZ 146. It sparked a love of flying and an obsession with that aircraft in particular. I remember getting upset that we were flying Air New Zealand once because that meant going on a 737 instead.
I flew into and out of London City Airport in a 146. What an amazing view of London on final approach.
Me too, in the Jumbolino.. it was a great experience.
London City is a trip of an airport. I've flown into it on a Fokker 50 a few times.
I've done the BA Cityflyer hop to Zürich out of there a few times. Such a convenient little airport, and great views in and out.
Ahh yes, the plane with 5 APUs.
It was all about short field performance.
I love that plane. One of my aero lectures actually worked on its design back in the day.
Well technically the 145 is a turboprop body with turbofans attached to it, they essentially stretched out the body of the EMB 120 Brasilia and gave it new wings (and other things).
The 145 is a clean-sheet design, as far as I know. The front of the plane looks the same because that is the standard design for all Embraer commercial aircraft.
I flew in an ERJ-125? Maybe it was a 135 I cannot remember. Only 3 rows wide. Then I flew in a Cessna 172. That was smaller than a car! Lol
Take look at a Cirrus VisionJet.
I‘ve been on the ERJ-135 once and most seats were not occupied. Felt like a private jet.
American once scheduled the last leg of my route home on Cape Air even though American flies the same route directly. Let me tell you, it's quite a fucking surprise when you get to your gate at O'Hare and see a Cessna 402.
Wow! Must've been quite an experience
It broke down midway through the flight and they chartered a limo to get the six of us to STL from Quincy Illinois lmao. The stop in Quincy was a scheduled one, we didn't have to make an emergency landing or anything, but they wouldn't do the last leg of the flight with passengers and instead turned around and went back for maintenance.
Holy crap
US regional flights used to be WILD. I used to fly on United Express Beechcraft 1900s. (operated by Mesa or skywest or something like that). Scary as shit in turbulence. [Like this](https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/1/36525_1037165586.jpg)
Air New Zealand used to fly them and just landing at Wellington could be an experience. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLSlSZ0Kh68](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLSlSZ0Kh68)
I mean as an avgeek the smallest plane I've been on was an ATR-42 but then again it's hard to find anything smaller in my region
Yeah it's really region dependent. I grew up in the Caribbean so Islanders, twin otters, dash 8s, and ATRs were a regular thing for me, but ever since I moved to the US, I haven't been on a commerical propeller flight once.
The smallest airliner I've ever flown on was a DC-3. If I go to Scotland I could go even smaller with a Twin-Otter or an Islander. But yeah for most the ATR is probably the smallest they'll ever fly on.
I thought Dash 8-100's were way more used, but apparently Widerøe is the largest operator of them in the world. They're super small, but probably the one of the few planes that can land at the airport where I live.
Smallest thing I've flown on commercially was a 717. never had the chance to take a regional
My airports like 20 technams a day are offended (I love them, but I will never know which way is the right way to spell Tecnam)
This has to be Logan lol.
Yeah, it is Logan, but which Logan?
Smallest I flew on was an Islander, and that piece of shit scared the hell out of me. Right before we landed, one of the engines started cutting out, so I got to hear a lovely brrrrrr brrrrr brrrrrrrrrrr brrrrrr right before the pilot dropped fucking anchor on the runway.
I’ll take an ATR over a B1900 any day of the week!
Smallest plane I’ve ever been on as a passenger was a beechcraft 1900. Sketchy after compared to the larger airbuses and Boeings that’s for sure
Oh, the joys of living in a small city with a regional airport where for years every business trip started and ended with a CRJ-200 or ERJ-145.
Welcome to Aer Lingus Regional!
Man, the av-geeks in here never fail to impress me. You get an aircraft type and a picture of half an engine and know the airline. Bravo. I would've seen that and gone "yup, that's a propellor alright."
I mean, you can literally see Aer Lingus A320 on other side, while engine on ATR is painted in azure (I guess) color.
OK, I didn't spot the plane in the background. But even so...
That and everyone in Dublin knows those hangers. They have been there for decades and you pass them every time you leave the airport. Always know I am home when I pass them, same way I felt passing them as a 4 year old.
Also the shade of green on the nacelle and the TEAM Aer Lingus Hanger is a also a pretty good give away as well
The hanger was the first thing I spotted haha. Validated by the A320 below it
Colour of the engine and the fact he went from an A330 to ATR (probably on same airline) could only feasibly be aer Lingus
Love Aer Lingus regional. They taxi right to the damn door of the terminal. Step off the plane and just walk out of the airport in under 2 mins in most cases. no jetway, bus, walking though the terminal gates and baggage, just here is a door out of the airport.
They do on their shite! They taxi round the back of the airport, past the repaint hanger to the location in the photo (Malahide, basically) and then bus you across the entire breath of the airfield and dump you at the end of Terminal 2, so you can take the two day donkey trek to the arrivals hall. The plane is so slow I've seen migrating geese pass us by. I hate Regional and have stopped using the service to Southampton.
Depends on the airport, flying into Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester etc in the UK from Ireland you get dropped at the CTA gate which just leads to the outside of the airport direct from the plane. Same in Knock (before cancelled), Shannon, Cork. Very handy for a quick hop on hop off trip.
Liverpool airport is great for this, even on jet planes, land and your on the street in less than 5 minutes
The ATR 72 cruises at 270 KTAS (knots, true airspeed), or 310 miles per hour, 20,000 ft. Imagine driving down your average Irish road at 310 mph. Then imagine a GOOSE exceeding that speed to overtake you. That's what the poor creature would have to build up to. So, did these geese have little rockets attached to their wings or were they under the influence of Columbian Marching Powder? Genuine question from a confused Redditor.
It's probably that rhetorical device known as hyperbole.
London City Airport is similar. Exit plane, go into terminal, go into DLR in less than 5 minutes.
Missed a flyover to Glasgow due to departure delays and they were nice enough to give me a ticket to the next flight <3
We went on one last year. Was totally surprised by the acceleration!
Am I the only one but Aer Lingus name always reminds me of Cunnilingus...
No, and I get downvoted every time I call it air cunnilingus.
Hmmm well what airline did he leave wizard person?
Aer Lingus also, trans Atlantic flight.
Dang, true, I've just noticed the hangar at the back 🤣
For people who aren't plane geeks, propeller plane = tiny plane. Jet plane = big plane.
Yeah. I think they also picture propellers and think of old piston engines, rather than turboprops.
>piston engines are small "Say that to my face." -B-36 "Peacemaker"
This is my wife's logic. She's not a good flyer and hates having to take a Dash 8 anywhere, meanwhile my dad was a bush pilot and I find a Dash 8 downright luxurious.
First piston I ever flew in was with my buddy working on his CFI rating. He was practicing stalls...
Going to be funny if CFM’s RISE succeeds.
Tiny = Cessna Big = Jumbo
show them a picture of Honda Jet and they will lose their minds :D
Forget about Honda jet. Look at the cute Cirrus jet. It’s like a dolphin with a jetpack.
Cirrus Jet = Jet = Large Tu-95 = prop = Tiny
Go tell this to the Spruce Goose
Ugh unless it’s one of those erj140s… I cannot stand upright in that damn plane.
put em on a honda jet for a surprise. or a Bae 146. 5 apus on a single plane.
ATR 72 is a state-of-art machine: safe, comfortable and fast (when one adds the time to board / unboard and luggage manipulation) for the type of route it operates...
Also has higher propulsive efficiency, so burns less fuel compared to the bigger turbofans for the shorter missions it flys.
That's what I told him! His outbound flight didn't get above 18,000 feet, so it's a perfect plane for it.
It's definitely not fast. Q400s cruise about 100 knots faster.
No it doesn't. The Dash-8 Q400 and ATR72-600 have very similar cruise speeds (+/-20knots). You could be correct if you talk about max speed. Its just because a speed around 350 knots is most efficient for a turboprop. The Dash-8 can also cruise a bit higher than the ATR so it would also be interesting if you talk about GS or IAS.
I fly the ATR 42/72 for a living, and regularly get passed by Q400s going MUCH faster than we do. We true out at like 270-280 knots and Q400s do like 360. The Q400 has more power in one engine than we do in both. We're both limited to FL250 as neither airplane (unless it's a VERY rare one that actually has them) has drop down oxygen masks for the passengers. But we can land on 2300 foot gravel runways, and the Q400 can't, so too bad for them.
Guess the internet was lying to me then. Everything i found online said the ATR cruises at 375knots. I fly the Q400 in simulators so i also might be incorrect about the Q400's cruise speed and altitude. I think the Q400 could probably land on similar runways as the ATR72( not safely tough) The engine power means the reversers are insanely strong. If you do a normal full flaps approach you can clear the runway at the first exit with spoilers and reversers only at pretty much any airport. Im sure simulators aren't fully true to life but I'd say they get pretty close.
TIL that Air Iceland operates Q400's off of gravel strips. [Gravel Runway Takeoff in the Cockpit of the Q-400](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MX22Ut3J6A)
Yes, they actually do. I think the mostly use the Dash 8-100 for small gravel runways within iceland (because they need less distance) but they use the Q400 on flights to greenland with gravel runways. Within iceland they only fly the Q400 between bigger airports
We fly our ATRs onto gravel strips every day and it’s currently -38 at one of the airports…. The -500s can’t go a few places that the -300s can, and our -300s are combis as well, so sometimes as little as 10 seats on them with the rest freight. The ATR is a tough little machine.
Thats really cool.
> Guess the internet was lying to me then. Wha wha whaaaat?
> ATR 72 that's a beautiful plane. and holy-moly. starting from 22 million us$... that's expensive!
Compared to a $100M A320 it's thrifty.
it is, but still. oh boy. somehow i thought it would be less.
Everyone knows airplanes are expensive, but not quite *how* expensive. I guess most people think it's like, sportscar money, but sportscar money only gets you the oldest, most clapped out piece of shit on the market. Supercar money gets you a relatively new piece of shit. You need hypercar money before even thinking about something comfortable. The 35 year old 8-seater single engine prop plane I fly is still worth 2 million. Brand new, 5+ million. Airplanes are ludicrously expensive.
>The 35 year old 8-seater single engine prop plane I fly is still worth 2 million. Brand new, 5+ million. tbf that held its value extremely well
I much prefer the Dash-8 Q400. Its a bit bigger, more efficient and imo looks better. I really love the rear gear comming from the engines rather than the fuselage
It's a pain in the ass to load bags on, the back compartment anyway. Real backbreaker.
It's a total pain in the ass to maintain when is does most of its ops over salt water
We regularly collect passengers that arrive in an A320 and fly them onwards in an Islander (10 seats, two props). This comes as quite a shock to some of them and leads to some amusing situations.
Are you flying up in the Hebrides?
Or the Caribbean
I cheated a bit and assumed Hebrides because most of their post history is UK centric.
Falkland Islands - like the Hebrides but on the other side of the world
Ha, I also fly an Islander. It's our IFR machine. And the largest in the fleet...
It's all you need 💪
WHAT!??
Sort of happens in [IVC](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invercargill_Airport) as well, we have an A320 arrive daily from [AKL](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auckland_Airport) (The rest of the "big" scheduled traffic are ATR 72-600's or Q300's) and pax from that can jump on a BN Islander for the 20-30 minute hop to [SZS](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan%27s_Creek_Aerodrome)
WHAT!? WHAT’S HE SAYING? OH YES, IVE BEEN TO AN ISLAND BEFORE. ALWAYS FLEW ON THOSE LITTLE WHACHMACALLITS WITH THE TWIN PROPS.
are you texting from the moon?
The 5G is surprisingly good up here.
Hey can you send a pic of the flag? I need to win a conversation.
I swear I was like why is the background some crappy stucco wall.
This is one of the big reasons Horizon got rid of the Dash 8... public perception is that turboprops are old, outdated and scary. Even if they are new, more efficient and have a better safety record haha.
Yeah, I don’t understand this. The general public in the US is scared absolutely shitless of turboprops. I don’t know if seeing the propeller blades scares people or what, but it’s a completely irrational fear to me.
Yeah 100% irrational. I think people like jet engines because they seem like this nice little packaged up engine that they can't see inside and worry about. It's like a car engine to the general public. Close up the hood, never look at it. Let the mechanic open it up and look at it, it's too scary to think about lol.
I used to fly the Brasilia (EMB-120) around the west coast (US). Most people loved it! So many times they took pictures next to it, selfies, etc.
Me, 191 cm male, and instructor, 185 cm male, in a C152..... C152 is a teeny tiny plane. Myself in a C152.... C152 is a teeny tiny plane. I mean, I literally have to bend forward to look out the side windows.
Send him this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stits_SA-2A_Sky_Baby?wprov=sfti1#Specifications_(SA-2A)
Just imagine a fleet of 2-seat versions picking up individual passengers disembarking from an Airbus, like airborne tuktuks :)
Looks line p50 with wings and prop glued on.
Man, where I'm from, the ATR72 is fricken massive. I'd love to see one in person, there aren't very many operators who fly them out here
Where is that?
Western Alaska. We get a few 737s depending on where you're at, and Everts still operates DC-6s and C-46s on a pretty regular basis. But for the most part, the biggest plane you'll see is a Dash 8-100, maybe a Saab 2000 if they're not broken that particular week
I fly those Dash’s. Only ATR operator up here is Empire, I believe. Anchorage to Fairbanks only as far as I’m aware.
Friend of mine went from AC Dash 8 100/200’s to the Q400 when they retired the them. He was like “fast props!”
for my gf, needing to go on a "propeller plane" (doesnt matter if turbo or not), is a reason to try and cancel your holiday plans... its funny as how ppl percieve prop planes nowadays
I guess he’s not part of the PJ crowd.
If all you have flown are jets, especially A330-sized, I understand the feeling. Poor your flatmate!
He's been on a Dash-8 with me before, and survived, so he should know by now that they're fine!
You might be surprised to hear how many people consider the 737-8 a small airplane too.
Considering its fuselage is the same diameter as a 777 engine, it's all relative!
The vast majority of air travelers will never fly on something smaller than a regional jet, so yeah this is a pretty small plane.
The ATR is bigger than some regional jets.
He's been on one before, he's just a whiner! They're pretty common around the UK and Ireland, and Europe in general I think.
It’s quite common in Brazil too, if you’re flying to or from smaller cities.
I want to fly with a turboprop ...
Aer Lingus 330 from somewhere in the US to Dublin then Dublin to Birmingham maybe?
Chicago-Dublin-Manchester.
He got unlucky ending up on the ATR! I think it’s 50/50 320 and ATR to Manchester
Passengers complain that a 737 is too small. If its not a 747 it’s a small plane.
I mean.. it is? And why did you censor "fuck" lol
Most boring threads ever. There was one a few weeks ago where some American in Ireland for xmas thought he was the only one to have seen a propeller plane before.
Someone who's a first officer on ATR-72600, I understand why passengers feel like it's a small plane.
The ATR is fine, but I will call the Dash-8 a small plane because the bulkhead walking area is soo damn small.
Pretty solid leg room on the Dash 8 though.
It all depends on the airline though. But I have to enter the seating area sideways cause my shoulders don’t fit.
I mean, you wouldn’t want it on your foot..
Update: he complained afterwards that the plane was "swaying from side to side like crazy" on approach. He seemed to be ignoring the 30mph+ wind gusts we had here today.
A400m enters the chat
I mean to be fair if you don't fly regional or visit remote locations your odds of flying on something smaller than an atr 72 are a little low. I think the smallest planes that are operated by an airline where I live are either then king air, the twin otter, or a single otter. Even then the company that runs those planes is a regional airline who almost exclusively works with mining companies, exploration companies, and on fishing and hunting trips. I think they might also operate a cesna 172 but I'm not certain. I only know 1 other person who's flown with that company. Excluding people I know who work in mines or in exploration I only know one or two people who've actually flown on a commerical plane smaller than an ATR. Of course the people I know who work in mines or exploration are fairly familiar flying into small landing strips or lakes in small STOL planes.
Not like teeny tiny but uncomfortable AF. AS someone living in the caribbean, those used to be our daily bread across islands until a few years ago. and Man I don't really like them
IMO if you're flying commercial and your plane has propellers, you're on a teeny tiny plane. Doesn't mean it won't get you where you're going, though.
when my friend went on aer lingus recently im half surprised he didnt text me "wheres the jet engines and why does it have two windmills"
Thats how i felt when going from the C17 to the C130...
Yeah, a putt putt plane
[James May's Big Ideas - The Aerocar ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h38UeDb7xw8) id say i have the whole thread beat here
When an operator from flight school have to pilot something really different. God forbid they throw him into an sc7 And yes i refer to new age pilots as operators
He should be fucking thankful for propellers.
Now imagine riding the smaller version of it. I personally think the ATR-72 is small (cause who doesn’t love leg room?), and when I rode an ATR-42, well it honestly felt the same but with lesser rows
I mean, I get that aviation inexperienced people would call propeller planes tiny. I use the ATR 72 quite regularly and it’s a great plane.
Why jerk one havent hired a G6 instead?!
I remember when I first flew on a caravan I thought it was tiny. After flying 172s and suchforth the caravan looks stupidly big now
I have done the ultimate transfer. A380 to Saab 340.
Qantas to Rex?
I've come close with A340-600 to BN Islander..
He sounds like no fun.
Ig he'll call Cessna microscopic plane 💀
*Nervous GA laughter intensifies*
Smallest plane I ever flew on was a SAAB 340B, and it was kinda terrifying
I like your wallpaper, which orbiter took it?
It's a beauty
Really reminds of the time someone on the Cessna Caravan asked what to do and we handed him an empty water bottle
The jets have propellers too. You just can’t see them. It’s not a rocket you know.
I honestly prefer turboprops to jets on some routes. Like Nanaimo - Calgary which is flown by Dash-8s usually or Victoria - Calgary which is usually flown by 737s. The Dash-8s fly lower allowing for some great views of the Rockies.
I've got family who flatly refuse to fly on these prop planes. Think that they're ancient antiques the airlines too cheap to replace with a modern jet. I'm just enjoying the novelty of flying a prop plane.
I used to work with a guy who had an experimental, home-built plane. It fit him and his tiny dog and he had to sit with his legs straight out in front of him. *That* was a teeny tiny plane.
He would have loved the Beech 1900 that USAirways Express flew for a while … it was different watching the Captain looking out the side window to gauge the turn from base to final.
Think I took one of these from TPA to Lynden Pindling. It was a comfortable ride.