ATR appoints Damien Proust as Senior Vice President Engineering
Toulouse, 15 April 2026 – Damien Proust has been appointed Senior Vice-President Engineering and Head of Design Organisation at ATR, effective May 1st, 2026. Damien will report directly to ATR’s Chief Executive Officer, Nathalie Tarnaud Laude. He succeeds Daniel Cuchet, who is taking over the position of Chief Engineer for the A380 and A310/300 in-service aircraft at Airbus, as well as Head of the Legacy programmes.
Damien brings more than two decades of engineering and leadership experience, having held several senior positions at Airbus. Since 2018, he has served as Vice-President, Head of Propulsion Airframe, overseeing research, development, production and in‑service support activities for pylons and nacelles across all aircraft programmes.
In addition to his Airbus role, he also serves as Technology & Engineering Senior Delegate in France, advocating for over 6,300 engineers on social, safety and institutional matters. In parallel, he is Vice President of TOMPASSE, a leading aerospace industry association in the South‑West region of France.
His previous roles include key leadership positions within the A350 programme, covering fuselage and empennage engineering, as well as airframe integration. A graduate of ICAM Toulouse in 1998, he began his career as a consultant at Accenture before joining Airbus.
ATR is delighted to welcome Damien, whose experience, values and collaborative leadership will support the company’s continued evolution and its ambition for sustainable regional aviation.
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About ATR
ATR is the world number one regional aircraft manufacturer with its ATR 42 and 72, the best-selling aircraft in the below 90-seat market segment. The unifying vision of the company is to accelerate sustainable connections for people, communities and businesses, no matter how remote. Flown by some 200 airlines in over 100 countries, ATR aircraft open 120 new routes on average every year, facilitating the development of territories and enabling access to crucial services like healthcare and education. Thanks to ATR’s focus on continuous innovation and the intrinsic efficiency of the turboprop technology, ATR aircraft are the most advanced, versatile, cost-effective and lowest-emission regional aircraft on the market, emitting 45% less CO2 than similar-size regional jets. In January 2022, we flew the first ever commercial aircraft using 100% SAF in both engines. ATR is a joint-venture between Airbus and Leonardo.