ATR 72 ATR 72-101

The -101 is the first production version of the ATR 72 and, together with the -102, makes up the 100 series. Its distinguishing feature is the door layout: front and rear, both for passengers, aimed at operators who wanted to board from the front and use jet bridges. Finnair, the type's launch customer, ordered exactly that arrangement so it could use the jet bridges at Helsinki, whereas most ATR 72 configurations board through the rear door and keep the front one for cargo.

It carried two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW124B engines of 1,800 kW (2,400 shp), the programme's original powerplant, driving four-bladed Hamilton Standard propellers. The ATR 72 prototype flew on 27 October 1988 and the type was awarded its airworthiness certificate by the French Directorate General for Civil Aviation on 25 September 1989; the -101 was certified that same September and the -102 in December. On 27 October 1989 Finnair placed it in service.

The 100 series had a short commercial life: the higher maximum take-off weight of the 200 series replaced it on the assembly line almost immediately. In ATR's September 2018 tally, all the early versions — series 100, 200 and 210 together — amounted to 187 aircraft produced, of which 172 were still flying with 55 operators.