KUALA LUMPUR: Turboprop airplanes remain important in bridging the distance gap for remote and sparsely populated communities especially in lower-middle-income countries where air travel soared by nearly 400 per cent before the pandemic.
The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) director general Subhas Menon said many countries would remain cut off from goods, services, better livelihoods and tourism without the operations of turboprop aircraft.
"Turboprops are the unsung heroes for connectivity and economic growth, particularly in sprawling countries, of which there are a fair few in Asia.
"Where jets cost too much and road trips feel like a test of endurance, turboprops come to the rescue, bridging gaps for remote and sparsely populated communities," Menon said at the first Asia Pacific Turboprop Safety Conference (APTSC) last week.
The APTSC, organised by the AAPA, was held in Kuala Lumpur on June 26-27.
The event was attended by over a hundred delegates, including representatives from some 20 turboprop operators in Australia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Maldives, Nepal, Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand, to name a few.
This year's conference, themed 'Empowering Resilient Growth' is aimed to strengthen aviation safety in air transportation, particularly in turboprop operations.
According to Aviation Week Network, turboprop operations in Asia Pacific and China has recovered from the pandemic in 2023, surpassing 2019 levels in terms of flight hours despite lesser number of propellers flying in the region.
The magazine said based on its Tracked Aircraft Utilisation tool, there are 821 turboprop aircraft in the region in 2023 compared to 871 in 2019.
Aviation Week Network also said based on its Fleet Discovery database, there are 825 in-service turboprop airplanes in Asia Pacific, including 215 ATR 72-600s and 102 Dash 8s.
Malaysia Aviation Group's Firefly Sdn Bhd is operating 12 twin turboprop aircraft, comprising of ATR 72-500 apart from three narrow-body Boeing 737-800s in its fleet.
Menon said turboprops are at least 15 per cent more fuel-efficient than regional jets on comparable routes and the propeller airplanes serve as an important career stepping stone for commercial pilots.
"I read that a quieter and more fuel-efficient engine powered by propeller blades is on the way. And with electrification on the horizon, electric propellers might soon drive air transport," he added.