On 4 November 1981, the aircraft was launched with ATR, as a joint venture between French Aérospatiale (now Airbus) and Aeritalia (now Leonardo S.p.A.). The number "42" in its name is derived from the aircraft's original standard seating capacity of 42 passengers.
Civilian operators
In July 2017, 232 ATR 42s were in airline service and 10 were in order backlog: 106 in Americas, 67 in Europe, 38 in Asia, Pacific and the Middle East, and 21 in Africa.[citation needed]
On 1 August 2017 Silver Airways placed orders for 20 ATR 42–600 aircraft, marking the entry of the −600 into the U.S. market,[1] with four in service as of the fourth quarter 2019.[2]
By November 2018, Loganair was to replace its Saab 340s and Saab 2000s, costly to operate and maintain, mostly the 2000, with around 20 ATR 42s over four to five years from the third quarter of 2019.[3]
Military operators
As of August 2022, 6 ATR 42s were in military service.[4]