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Air Mauritius added a new ATR72-500 aircraft to its fleet on December 17, 2010. The plane was ferried to Mauritius from Toulouse over a series of technical stopovers, which included Cairo, Djibouti, and the Seychelles. The aircraft landed in Mauritius on December 20 at 1730 hours local time.
The new aircraft is named after Ile aux Aigrettes, a nature reserve inlet anchored about 800 meters (875 yards) off the southeast coast of Mauritius. Equipped with Pratt&Whitney PW 127M engines, the new ATR72-500 leased from Nordic Aviation Capital has a configuration of 72 economy class seats. It will replace one of the existing ATR72-500 aircraft, which will be returned to the lessor this year. The delivery of the new ART72-500 will provide additional capacity and flexibility on the inter-island routes (Reunion and Rodriques) during the peak period of December through January.
Andre Viljoen, the airline’s acting CEO, stated: “We are very proud to welcome this brand new aircraft to our turbo-prop fleet. This is the first ATR72-500 aircraft painted in the new Air Mauritius livery. The interior cabin also displays a new look and feel reflecting the Mauritian ambiance in-flight. We trust that our customers and partners will be pleased with this improved offering on our inter-island network.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
