Secretary for the Economy assures that the new SATA fleet option is properly supported
The Regional Secretary for the Economy considered, during a debate at the Legislative Assembly of the Autonomous Region of the Azores today, that SATA has made the best financial and technical choice by acquiring the Dash Q200 and Q400 aircrafts to renew the inter-island fleet.
Vasco Cordeiro, who answered several questions posed by the Opposition, rejected the idea that the Dash Q200 are old and outdated aircrafts, remind that they were “subject to a thorough overhauling conducted by Bombardier,” and “their real age is well below the average age of the same aircrafts that are at the service of other air companies. (…) According to data provided by manufacturer, the two Dash Q200 have not even reached half of the estimated time of their useful life.”
The Secretary also reminded that the entire process to replace the SATA Air Açores fleet was achieved “with the consultancy provided by expert entities in this sector,” stating that all the studies “demonstrate the Bombardier planes were the best solution.”
Concerning this issue, the decision is properly “supported from a technical, operational and management level,” assured the Regional Secretary.
Mentioning the issue related to the existence of a manufacturer which is currently producing an aircraft that would fit into the characteristics of the service in the Archipelago, Vasco Cordeiro said that the decision had to be evaluated, taking into account the moment when it was made and the available facts at that time.
“If we were always to wait for the latest model, we would never acquire neither planes nor any other type of equipments,” stated the Secretary.
The Regional Secretary for the Economy also regretted that the opposition parties “are not cautious” regarding the way how they approach the matters related to the Azorean air company, reassuring the policy of the Azorean Government for SATA, which conciliates the rendering of public service with the necessary economic rationality, enabling a balanced and sustainable management.
“We always expect the best from SATA, but we must be careful so that we may have someone to whom we can demand, beacuse at the limit, we cannot demand to someone who no longer exists,” stated Vasco Cordeiro.