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First Twin Otter built in 22 years ready for first official test flight
Viking Air confirms first test flight for its dependable workhorse
February 12, 2010
The first Twin Otter aircraft built in 22 years will get wind under its wings sometime next week.
Viking Air, the Victoria-based company that has resurrected the rugged de Havilland plane, confirmed the first official test flight will take place in the skies over Calgary -- although the time, day and other details of the flight plan are a closely guarded secret.
Viking hopes to earn certification from Transport Canada and the European Aviation Safety Agency in about 90 days and start delivering the 19-seat Twin Otters later this year.
Viking flew a prototype version of the new Twin Otter over the Saanich Peninsula in October 2008 to test the engines, avionics and landing gear. Next week's flight, however, marks a more significant aviation milestone because the aircraft is entirely new, with more than 200 modifications from the original.
Each of the new planes is worth about $4 million. Viking has bookings for more than 40 of the aircraft -- almost all to overseas customers -- creating a manufacturing backlog to the end of 2012 or early 2013, said Murray.
Viking plans to build 12 to 18 of the aircraft over the next two years and then assess production schedules based on orders.
Murray said 10 of the DHC-6 Series 400 planes are in the final stages of assembly at the company's Calgary plant, while the development of components for other planes continues daily at Viking's 11,000-square-metre facility at Victoria International Airport
The first order is for Swiss-based Zimax Aviation, which is using the plane for oil and gas exploration in Angola. Air Seychelles has the next two, followed by five planes ordered by Trans Maldivian Airlines, and then one for the air force of the United Arab Emirates.
The most recent orders in October were from Russia and Libya. Moscow-based Vityaz Avia Corp., which has agreed to purchase two of the planes configured for commuter service, will be the first Twin Otter operator in Russia. Petro Air, which serves the oil and gas industry in Libya, also ordered a Series 400 Twin Otter to go with their fleet of nine legacy Twin Otters.
A report by the BBC, quoting The Straits Times website, said Vietnam had reached agreement to buy three amphibious Twin Otters from Viking for use by its navy in maritime patrols. The news agency said the planes will be equipped with radar and likely support a fleet of six Russian-made Kilo-class submarines, a sale the Vietnamese finalized with Moscow in December. The website said the Twin Otter deliveries were due to start in 12 to 18 months.
Another company, Logan Air, which flies passengers between Scotland and beach runways on the Hebrides island of Barra, said it may cancel the service because of its aging Twin Otter fleet.
Logan Air told the newspaper Scotland On Sunday that even if it placed an order with Viking Air immediately, it would not be able to secure any new planes until 2015.
Viking acquired the rights to de Havilland's heritage brands of planes -- DHC-1 through DHC-7 but better known by names like the Otter, Beaver, Caribou and Buffalo -- in 2006 from Bombardier.
Viking has indicated to the federal government that it can replace the current Buffalo fleet of rescue aircraft for half the cost of the proposed Italian-designed plane, the C27J, built in a U.S. plant. Although Ottawa appears to be re-evaluating its requirements, Viking is currently focused on the Twin Otter.
