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Viking Air Ltd. was an operator and manufacturer of aircraft, as well as aircraft parts and systems, based at Victoria International Airport in North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The company provides upgrades to the DHC-2 Beaver, spare parts for older de Havilland Canada aircraft, and components for Bell Helicopter Textron. The company operated as a subsidiary of Longview Aviation Capital until it was amalgamated into it along with sister company De Havilland Canada in August 2024, with the resulting company using the DHC name only.
The company is a subsidiary of Longview Aviation Capital, which is owned by Sherry Brydson, granddaughter of deceased newspaper magnate Roy Thomson and cousin of David Thomson, parties of the largest family fortune in Canada.
Viking Air also produces upgraded DHC-2 Beavers fitted with a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 turboprop engine called the DHC-2T Turbo Beaver.
In December 2008, Viking Air indicated their intention to put the DHC-5 Buffalo series back into production in Canada at their home factory in North Saanich or in Calgary, Alberta. A potential new production Buffalo would have had Pratt & Whitney Canada PW150 turboprops, a glass cockpit, enhanced vision and night vision goggle capability. The company proposed the aircraft as a replacement for the Royal Canadian Air Force fleet of existing DHC-5As but the aircraft was not included in the final assessment in 2016 which chose the EADS CASA C-295.Niles, Russ. "Viking Proposes Resurrection Of DHC-5 Buffalo". avweb.com, December 2008. Retrieved: 13 September 2009.
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.
On March 31, 2022, De Havilland Canada Ltd. (under Viking Air) announced plans for the DHC-515 Firefighter Program. Formerly known as the CL-515 program, the new water bomber aircraft builds upon the iconic CL-215 and CL-415 firefighting aircraft with modern features and improvements. Production and final assembly are to occur in Calgary, where support for existing in-service CL-215 and CL-415 aircraft takes place. The company has signed letters of intent for the purchase of the first 22 DHC-515 aircraft by European customers. The program is expected to bring 500 jobs to Calgary.
In January 2019, parent company Longview announced that it would establish a new company in Ontario, under the De Havilland Aircraft Company of Canada name, to continue production of the Bombardier Dash 8 line.
The Dash 8 acquisition will vault Longview from 600 to 700 employees to up to 2,000 including the CL-415 new production.
After Bombardier sold the Q400 plant in Downsview, Ontario, Longview has three years to find a new location in Ontario where production should stay with 1,000 people.
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.
Further type certificate acquisitions
In 2006, Viking Air acquired the type certificate for the Trident TR-1 Trigull since 2006, along with the three prototypes built. On 20 June 2016, Viking announced the acquisition of the worldwide amphibious aircraft program from Bombardier, including the type certificate for the CL-215, CL-215T and CL-415 Waterbombers. The acquisition was finalized on 3 October.
On 29 May 2018, five CL-415 were sold to US firefighting company Bridger Aerospace, Longview then expected to recruit 200 workers in Calgary for the conversions.
Dash-8 acquisition
On 8 November 2018, Viking Air parent Longview Aviation acquired the Bombardier Dash 8 program and the de Havilland brand from Bombardier to continue Q400 production, in Downsview until the lease ends in 2021, in a deal that closed in the second half of 2019, bringing together all of the DHC type certificates under one umbrella once again.
Bombardier announced the sale was for $300 million, and expects $250 million net.
After the deal, Longview will have $1 billion (US$670 million) in annual sales and 1,800 workers in Victoria, Calgary and Toronto.
By November 2018 the sales of the higher-performance Q400 were slower than the cheaper aircraft from competitor ATR.
Products
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.
+ Viking Air fleet 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 turboprop amphibious aircraft, with a price at that time estimated at US$400,000, but since then no further news has been released.
See also
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External reading
Categories: Official Website, Aircraft Manufacturers Of Canada, Multinational Aircraft Manufacturers, Aerospace Companies Of Canada, Manufacturing Companies Established In 1970, Emergency Services Equipment Makers, Canadian Brands, De Havilland Canada, 1970 Establishments In British Columbia, Canadian Companies Established In 1970, Thomson Family
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