British Aerospace ATP

The British Aerospace ATP, short for Advanced Turbo-Prop, is a retired turboprop airliner designed and produced by British Aerospace as an evolution of the Hawker Siddeley HS 748. It was planned in the 1980s for short-range service on the belief that the 1979 oil crisis and growing concern about aircraft noise created a market for a quiet, fuel-efficient turboprop. The airframe was redesigned with a longer fuselage and a larger wing and was originally sized for 64 passengers, with a glass cockpit and slower, large-diameter six-blade propellers to reduce noise. It first flew on 6 August 1986, but competition from the Dash 8, ATR 42 and ATR 72 limited sales, and production ended after eight years with 65 aircraft completed.