Viking Air
Parent De Havilland Canada | | |
Website | vikingair |
---|
Viking Air Ltd. is an operator and manufacturer of aircraft, as well as aircraft parts and systems, based at
History
The company was established in 1970 by founder, Norwegian-born Canadian aviation pioneer Nils Christensen, doing overhaul, maintenance and conversions to all types of aircraft but specializing in flying boats.[3] In 1983, Christensen acquired the exclusive rights from de Havilland Canada to manufacture spare parts and to distribute the DHC-2 Beaver and the DHC-3 Otter aircraft. He retired as president of Viking Air in 1987.[4]
The company is a subsidiary of Longview Aviation Capital,
Acquisition of de Havilland Canada designs: DHC-1 through DHC-7
In May 2005, the company subsequently purchased the parts and service business for all the older de Havilland Canada aircraft from
Restart of DHC production
On 2 April 2007, Viking announced that, nineteen years after being discontinued, with 27 orders and options in hand, it was restarting production of the Twin Otter with more powerful
Viking Air also produces upgraded DHC-2 Beavers fitted with a
In December 2008, Viking Air indicated their intention to put the
In September 2017, Viking Air announced that it would begin talking to potential customers interested in the CL-415 "SuperScooper" Waterbomber aircraft, with the potential of the company reviving production of the aircraft if it finds demand.[5]
On March 31, 2022, De Havilland Canada Ltd. (under Viking Air) announced plans for the DHC-515 Firefighter Program.
Further type certificate acquisitions
In 2006, Viking Air acquired the type certificate for the
On 29 May 2018, fiveDash-8 acquisition
On 8 November 2018, Viking Air parent Longview Aviation acquired the
In January 2019, parent company Longview announced that it would establish a new company in Ontario, under the
In February 2022, Longview consolidated its activities, with Viking Air, Longview Aviation, Pacific Sky Training and De Havilland Canada all being rebranded as De Havilland Aircraft of Canada.[29]
Products
- Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34680 hp (507 kW) turboprop engine.
Fleet
As of February 2023, Viking Air has the following aircraft listed with Transport Canada and operate as ICAO airline designator VKN, and call sign TRUE NORTH.[30][31]
Aircraft | No. of aircraft | Variants | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk | 1 | ||
de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver | 6 | MK. I | |
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter | 2 | Series 300, Series 310 | |
Trident TR-1 Trigull | 2 | Viking Air owns the two remaining prototype aircraft, serial # 1 and 3. In 2003 Viking Air indicated an interest in producing the Trigull as a | |
Viking DHC-6 Twin Otter | 10 | Series 400 | |
Total | 21 |
See also
- Bombardier Aerospace
- COM DEV International
- CMC Electronics
- Héroux-Devtek
- List of STOL aircraft
- MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates
- Spar Aerospace
References
- ^ Canada, De Havilland Aircraft of. "Longview Aviation Capital Announces Consolidation of Companies under De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited and Appoints Brian Chafe Chief Executive Officer". www.newswire.ca.
- ^ strategis.gc.ca: "Canadian Company Profiles – Viking Air Limited – Company information", retrieved 26 May 2014
- ^ "Nils Christensen". Helicopters Magazine. 25 September 2008.
- ^ "Member Profiles". Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame. 2015.
- ^ a b "Varcoe: Viking Air building case for water-bomber manufacturing in Calgary". Calgary Herald. 8 September 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ David Ebner (8 November 2018). "Longview Aviation revenue set to take off with Bombardier Q400 turboprop acquisition". Globe and mail.
- ^ "Viking Air acquires assets of Bombardier". Wings Magazine. 5 May 2005. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
- ^ Viking Air Limited (23 February 2006). "Viking Acquires Type Certificates for de Havilland Canada Heritage Aircraft from Bombardier" (Press release).
- ^ Viking restarts Twin Otter production 2 April 2007
- ^ First Flight For New Twin Otter A "Boring" Success Archived 2 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine 01 October 2008
- ^ First Flight For New Twin Otter AvFlash News, 27 February 2010
- ^ "DHC-2T Turbo Beaver". Viking Air Ltd. 26 September 2014.
- ^ Niles, Russ. "Viking Proposes Resurrection Of DHC-5 Buffalo". avweb.com, December 2008. Retrieved: 13 September 2009.
- ^ Brewster, Murray (8 December 2016) [7 December 2016]. "Airbus chosen to build Canada's new search planes, ending 12-year procurement odyssey". CBC News.
- ^ "De Havilland launches DHC-515 Firefighter program". Skies Mag. 31 March 2022.
- ^ The Canadian Press (31 March 2022). "De Havilland to manufacture line of firefighting planes in Calgary". CBC News. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
- ^ a b Transport Canada (6 February 2006). "Type Certificate A-119".
- ^ Viking Air (20 June 2016). "Viking Air Limited Acquires Worldwide CL-415 Waterbomber Program from Bombardier" (Press release).
- ^ "Viking Air to buy type certificates for Bombardier amphibians". Flightglobal. 21 June 2016.
- ^ "Viking completes acquisition of Bombardier's amphibious aircraft programme". Flight Global. 3 October 2016.
- ^ "Longview Aviation Asset Management Announces Bridger Aerospace Group as Launch Customer for Viking CL-415EAF "Enhanced Aerial Firefighter" Conversion Program" (Press release). Longview Aviation. 29 May 2018.
- ^ "Longview Aviation Capital Corp. Acquires Dash 8 Program from Bombardier Inc" (PDF) (Press release). Longview Aviation Capital Corp. 8 November 2018.
- ^ Frederic Tomesco (8 November 2018). "Bombardier Sinks Most Since 2015 as Hopes Dim for Turnaround". Bloomberg.
- ^ "Bombardier to sell Q400 programme". Flightglobal. 8 November 2018.
- ^ Kevin Orland; Frederic Tomesco (8 November 2018). "Bombardier Deal Gives Turboprop Crown to Twin Otter Planemaker".
- ^ Bogaisky, Jeremy (8 November 2018). "Bombardier Sells Aging Q400 Turboprop Line, Cutting 5,000 Jobs As It Sharpens Focus On Business Jets". Forbes.
- Aviation Week.
- ^ Graham Warwick (25 January 2019). "Canada's Longview Wants To Continue Q400 Production". Aviation Week & Space Technology.
- ^ "Viking Air rebrands within consolidation of LAC companies". Business Air News. 8 February 2022.
- ^ "ICAO Designators for Canadian Aircraft Operating Agencies, Aeronautical Authorities and Services" (PDF). Nav Canada. 4 May 2023. p. 8. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
Viking Air: VKN, TRUE NORTH
- ^ "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Quick Search Result for Viking Air". Transport Canada. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
- ^ Federal Aviation Administration (May 1987). "Type Certificate Data Sheet No. A19AE". Retrieved 1 July 2012.
- ^ Transport Canada (28 April 202). "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Quick Search Result for Trident Trigull TR-1". Retrieved 27 February 2023.
- ^ Saevdal, Steinar (13 October 2010). "The Trident Trigull Amphibian". Retrieved 1 July 2012.
- ^ Niles, Russ (30 March 2003). "Bush Plane Legends Come Back". AVweb. Retrieved 1 July 2012.
External links
- Official website
- Company Profile at Industry Canada
- "Victoria-built planes fly around the globe"[permanent dead link], Times-Colonist, 6 December 2011
External reading
- Sean Rossiter The Immortal Beaver: The World's Greatest Bush Plane , Douglas & McIntyre, 2005 ISBN 1-55054-724-0,