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77-414: On 6 May 1988, Widerøe Flight 710 from Namsos Airport to Brønnøysund Airport crashed into the side of the mountain, and all 36 passengers and crew died. According to legend, the hole was made by the troll Hestmannen while he was chasing the beautiful woman Lekamøya . As the troll realized he would not overtake her, he released an arrow to kill her, but the troll-king of Sømna threw his hat into

154-583: A cockpit voice recorder . Both were found intact and were decoded at the Air Accidents Investigation Branch in the United Kingdom. Improper use of the microphone made it difficult to hear the captain's voice, but it was possible to reconstruct the conversations and line of events. A memorial service was held on 10 May and was attended by Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland . The last Home Guard personnel concluded their work on 11 May and

231-422: A fighter jet . Also in the following two major Widerøe accidents, Flight 893 in 1990 and Flight 744 in 1993, the investigation uncovered operational shortcomings. The press had an aggressive coverage of the accident. Several major press organizations attended the memorial service, and newspapers published close-up pictures of crying next of kin on their front pages. The Norwegian Press Complaints Commission ,

308-448: A 90-minute delay at 19:23 due technical problems with another aircraft. Flight 710 had a crew of three: a captain, a first officer and a flight attendant. The aircraft was packed and therefore a jump seat in the cockpit was used by a passenger, bringing the number of people on board to 52. The aircraft made a stop-over at Namsos, where sixteen of the passengers disembarked. This reduced the number of passengers on board to thirty-three, but

385-414: A call from a resident close to Torghatten which said they had heard aircraft noise followed by a crash. Brønnøysund Fire Department and an ambulance helicopter with a doctor was dispatched to Torghatten. The rescue work was made difficult by low clouds, small fires and explosions. The terrain was difficult and the lack of daylight made assisting the situation difficult. A helicopter with medical personnel and

462-423: A committee appointed by the newspapers themselves, acquitted Dagbladet after a complaint for their aggressive image use. However, the accident coverage started an internal debate among journalists about their coverage of major accidents. The conclusion was that private sorrow was not to be covered in the media, and since then they have had a strict self-enforcement of such a policy. Brønnøysund Airport installed

539-453: A graphical presentation; and confusion as to when the timing of final approach should start. The commission also criticized the airline for its checklists instructing the pilots to tune one of the VHF channels to the company frequency during descent, at a time when non-safety-related communication is unwanted. Because the aircraft was fully booked, a passenger was allowed to sit in the jump seat in

616-420: A light shower and 6 °C (43 °F). At 20:23:22 the first officer held a 62-second conversation with the airline ordering a taxi for one of the passengers so he could reach his connecting ferry. The captain asked for the descent checklist at 20:24:24. The fasten seat belt sign was switched on and the flight attendant started the process of preparing the cabin for landing. At 20:24:46 the captain, as part of

693-731: A passenger terminal and maintenance hangar in Clear Lake City, Texas , near the Johnson Space Center . The Clear Lake City STOLport was specifically designed for Twin Otter operations. According to the February 1976 edition of the Official Airline Guide , Houston Metro operated 22 round-trip flights every weekday at this time between Clear Lake City (CLC) and Houston Intercontinental Airport, now George Bush Intercontinental Airport , in

770-477: A scheduled passenger airline shuttle operation. Houston Metro had agreements in place for connecting passenger feed services with Continental Airlines and Eastern Air Lines at Houston Intercontinental, with this major airport having a dedicated STOL landing area at the time specifically for Twin Otter flight operations. The Clear Lake City STOLport is no longer in existence. The Walt Disney World resort in Florida

847-462: A seven-degree angle, plus/minus one degree. The tip of the starboard wing was the first to hit the mountain, followed by engine number four (the right-most). The engine was immediately torn off and the aircraft started to rotate. The aircraft started being torn in the back rib of the starboard wing. Then the nose and port wing from engine number two (the inner) hit a depression in the mountain-face, causing engine number one to loosen from its nacelle and

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924-641: A successful commuter airliner , typically seating 18–20 passengers, as well as a cargo and medical evacuation aircraft. In addition, the Twin Otter has been popular with commercial skydiving operations, and is used by the United States Army Parachute Team and the 98th Flying Training Squadron of the United States Air Force . Development of the aircraft began in 1964, with the first flight on 20 May 1965. A twin-engine replacement for

1001-722: A total of 270 Twin Otters were in airline service, and 14 on order: 111 in North/South America, 117 in the Asia Pacific and Middle East (14 orders), 26 in Europe and 13 in Africa. In 2020, there were a total of 315 Twin Otters worldwide with 220 in service, 95 in storage and 8 on order. By region there were 22 in Africa, 142 in Asia Pacific (8 orders), 37 in Europe, 4 in the Middle East and 110 in

1078-491: A total of 584 Twin Otter aircraft (all variants) remained in service worldwide. Major operators at the time included: Libyan Arab Airlines , Maldivian Air Taxi , Trans Maldivian Airways , Kenn Borek Air , and Grand Canyon Scenic Airlines . Some 115 airlines operated smaller numbers of the aircraft including Yeti Airlines in Nepal, Malaysia Airlines (which used the Twin Otter exclusively for passenger and freight transportation to

1155-618: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Wider%C3%B8e Flight 710 Widerøe Flight 710 , commonly known as the Torghatten Accident ( Norwegian : Torghatten-ulykken ), was a controlled flight into terrain into the mountain of Torghatten in Brønnøy Municipality , Norway . The Widerøe -operated de Havilland Canada Dash 7 crashed on 6 May 1988 at 20:29:30 during approach to Brønnøysund Airport, Brønnøy . All thirty-six people on board LN-WFN were killed;

1232-648: Is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada in the mid-1960s and still in production today. Built by De Havilland Canada from 1965 to 1988, Viking Air purchased the type certificate and restarted production in 2008, before re-adopting the DHC name in 2022. In 2023 DHC restarted production of the 300 series, in addition to the Series 400 produced by Viking. The aircraft's fixed tricycle undercarriage , STOL capabilities, twin turboprop engines and high rate of climb have made it

1309-414: Is a distinct height in an area which is otherwise rather flat. The aircraft hit the western side of the mountain at a point where the terrain is forty degrees steep. The center line of the flight path is 800 m (2,600 ft) from Torghatten. The wreck was spread over an area 60 to 100 m (200 to 330 ft) below the point of impact. AFIS made several attempts to call up the aircraft. It received

1386-651: Is mentioned in the "Air Commuter Section" of the 6 September 1972 Eastern Air Lines system timetable as a connecting service to and from Eastern flights. This STOL airfield is no longer in use. Another commuter airline in the United States, Rocky Mountain Airways , operated Twin Otters from the Lake County Airport in Leadville, Colorado . At an elevation of 3,026 m (9,927 ft) above mean sea level, this airport

1463-419: Is the highest airfield in the United States ever to have received scheduled passenger airline service, thus demonstrating the wide-ranging flight capabilities of the Twin Otter. Rocky Mountain Airways went on to become the worldwide launch customer for the larger, four-engine de Havilland Canada Dash 7 STOL turboprop, but continued to operate the Twin Otter, as well. Larger scheduled passenger airlines based in

1540-697: The Kelabit Highlands region in Sarawak ), and in the United Kingdom, the Scottish airline, Loganair which uses the aircraft to service the island of Barra in the Outer Hebrides . This daily scheduled service is unique as the aircraft lands on the beach and the schedule is partly influenced by the tide tables. Trials at Barra Airport with heavier planes than the Twin Otter, like the Short 360, failed because they sank in

1617-684: The National Criminal Investigation Service arrived to assist AIBN. Six people appointed by the Canadian Aviation Safety Board , including representatives from de Havilland Canada and Pratt & Whitney Canada , were sent to aid the investigation. Four representatives from Widerøe were available for consultation with the commission. The investigation commission was later supplemented by Psychologist Grethe Myhre and Øverkil replaced by Arne Huuse . The VOR/DME system

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1694-513: The SCAT-I satellite-based landing system on 29 October 2007. Avinor 's Steinar Hamar stated at the opening ceremony that the system would have prevented both Flight 710 and Flight 744 at Namsos Airport in 1993. The roll-out, taking place at most of Avinor's regional airports, is scheduled for completion in 2013. De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter

1771-423: The VHF omnidirectional radio range (VOR) and distance measuring equipment (DME) at Brønnøysund was checked at 20:26:37. The approach checklist was started at 20:27:01, at which time the aircraft's altitude reached 500 m (1,600 ft). The first point on the checklist was not readable, but the last three were. At 20:27:32 the captain asked for flaps and landing gear , which were immediately deployed by

1848-486: The type certificates from Bombardier Aviation for all out-of-production de Havilland Canada aircraft ( DHC-1 through DHC-7 ). The ownership of the certificates gives Viking the exclusive right to manufacture new aircraft. On 17 July 2006, at the Farnborough Airshow , Viking Air announced its intention to offer a Series 400 Twin Otter. On 2 April 2007, Viking announced that with 27 orders and options in hand, it

1925-710: The AC electrical system, modernization of the electrical and lighting systems, and use of composites for non load-bearing structures such as doors. The 100th Series 400 Twin Otter (MSN 944) was displayed at the July 2017 EAA AirVenture Oshkosh . At the time 38% were operated as regional airliners , 31% were in military aviation use, 26% in industrial support and 5% were in private air charter . Seventy were on regular landing gear wheels, 18 were configured as straight or amphibious floatplanes , 10 had tundra tires and two had wheel skis . In 2019, Viking started making plastic components for

2002-482: The Civil Aviation Administration change the flight paths at Brønnøysund to increase the altitude around Torghatten. Flight 710 was the second of four fatal Widerøe accidents which occurred between 1982 and 1993. In the first accident, Flight 933 , a poor cockpit culture had also been discovered, but little was followed up, in part because of a conspiracy theory which surfaced regarding a collision with

2079-464: The Dash 7 since February 23, 1988. He had started his flight training in 1977 and had completed it in the United States in 1979. He was hired as a pilot for Widerøe on February 6, 1986, originally serving on the de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter . He was checked out as first officer on the Dash 7 in February 1988. He had a total flight time of 6,458 hours, of which 85 were on the Dash 7. The flight attendant

2156-448: The Dash 7. He had completed periodical flight training with the Dash 7 on March 8, 1988. He had just returned to Norway following a six-week vacation in Spain. The first officer was 31-year-old Johannes Andal, a resident of Bømlo Municipality . He held a C-certificate, which limited him to being first officer on the Dash 7. The certificate was issued on January 5, 1987, and had been valid for

2233-435: The Series 400 on 21 July 2010. Six years after, in July 2016, 100 series 400 have been delivered to 34 customers operating in 29 countries. In June 2017, 125 have been made since restarting production in 2010. In 2016, there were 281 Twin Otters in airline service with 26 new aircraft on order: 112 in North/South America, 106 in Asia Pacific and Middle East (16 orders), 38 in Europe (10 orders) and 25 in Africa. In 2018,

2310-583: The Series 400 technical demonstrator, C-FDHT, took place 1 October 2008, at Victoria International Airport . Two days later, the aircraft departed Victoria, British Columbia for a ferry flight to Orlando, Florida , site of the 2008 National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) Conference and exhibition. The first new build Series 400 Twin Otter (SN 845) made its first flight on 16 February 2010, in Calgary , Alberta . Transport Canada presented Viking Air Limited with an amended DHC-6 Type Certificate including

2387-530: The Twin Otter by 3D printer to help reduce cost. Twin Otter production was suspended in 2019 during the COVID-19 pandemic . In July 2022, DHC announced that it was reviewing the program and supply chain, with a decision on when to resume production expected "in the near future". In 2023, its equipped price was $ 7.25M. In June 2023 Viking, now operating as De Haviland Canada started production of new DHC-6 Classic 300-G. Twin Otters could be delivered directly from

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2464-615: The Twin Otter is used in skydiving operations in many countries. The United States Air Force operates three Twin Otters for the United States Air Force Academy 's skydiving team. On 26 April 2001, the first ever air rescue during polar winter from the South Pole occurred with a ski-equipped Twin Otter operated by Kenn Borek Air . On 25 September 2008, the Series 400 Technology Demonstrator achieved "power on" status in advance of an official rollout. The first flight of

2541-676: The United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Australia, particularly jetliner operators, also flew Twin Otters, with the aircraft providing connecting feeder service for these airlines. Jet aircraft operators which also flew the Twin Otter included Aeronaves de Mexico , Air BC , Alaska Airlines , ALM Antillean Airlines , Ansett Airlines , Cayman Airways , Frontier Airlines , LIAT , Norcanair , Nordair , Ozark Air Lines , Pacific Western Airlines , Quebecair , South Pacific Island Airways , Time Air , Transair , Trans Australia Airlines (TAA), Wardair and Wien Air Alaska . In many cases,

2618-404: The aircraft had flown 147 hours and 30 cycles. The captain was 58-year-old Bjørn Hanssen, a resident of Bodø Municipality . He held a D-certificate issued April 8, 1981 and was last renewed on December 11, 1987. He took his initial license in 1949 and had worked as a pilot for Widerøe since April 1, 1960. At the time of his last renewal, he had flown 19,886 hours, of which 2,849 hours were with

2695-455: The airport direct arrived at 21:25, while a meeting place for the next of kin was established at the airport. At 23:30 the police stated that there was no hope of finding survivors and the scene changed from a search to an investigation scene. Due to the fog it was not possible to verify that all people had been killed until the next day. Seventy-five soldiers from the Home Guard participated in

2772-534: The arrow's path to save her. The hat turned into the mountain with a hole in the middle. The tunnel is 160 metres (520 ft) long, 20 metres (66 ft) wide, and 35 metres (115 ft) high. It was formed during the Scandinavian ice age . Ice and water eroded the looser rocks, while the harder ones in the mountain top have resisted erosion. This article about a mountain, mountain range, or peak in Nordland

2849-457: The beginning of Series 200 production included improving the STOL performance, adding a longer nose that was equipped with a larger baggage compartment (except for aircraft fitted with floats), and fitting a larger door to the rear baggage compartment. All Series 1, 100, and 200 aircraft and their variants (110, 210) were fitted with the 550 shp (410 kW) PT6A-20 engines. In 1969, the Series 300

2926-401: The checklist, informed the first officer that they would go down to 1,500 ft (460 m) at Torghatten and then down to 550 ft (170 m). This was followed first by a partially inaudible conversation between the captain and the first officers, which included if they were to fill fuel, and then an inaudible conversation between the captain and the jump seat passenger. The direction of

3003-479: The cockpit. The passenger had no connection with the airline, but was granted permission by the captain via an acquaintance in the airline. Several of the other passengers were employees in Widerøe and should—according to the airline's rules—instead have been seated there. From Namsos to Brønnøysund there were available seats in the cabin, but the jump seat passenger continued to sit in the cockpit. The commission felt that

3080-538: The crash remains the deadliest accident involving the Dash 7 and the deadliest in Northern Norway . The direct cause of the accident was that the aircraft had descended from 500 to 170 meters (1,640 to 560 ft) at 8 NM (15 km; 9.2 mi) instead of 4 NM (7.4 km; 4.6 mi) from the airport. An investigation found several shortcomings in the airline's operating procedures, in particular lack of proper cockpit communication and mutual control of

3157-411: The crash the aircraft had shifted its angle from −2.5 degrees to 5 degrees. At 20:29:29 the ground proximity warning system showed 'minimum'. The aircraft crashed into the western side of Torghatten at 20:29:30 at 170 meters (560 feet) elevation. The aircraft flew into the mountain at an angle of 15 to 20 degrees, with the starboard side towards the mountain. The aircraft was ascending at

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3234-428: The crash was that the approach was started 4 NM (7 km; 5 mi) too early and that the aircraft therefore came below the height of the terrain. No specific reason for the early approach was found, although there were several non-compliances by the crew members to regulations and procedures. Specifically, the commission pointed to the lack of internal control which would have identified operation shortcomings and

3311-467: The descent and approach plans. This was in part caused by the airline electing to not follow the sterile cockpit rule and that a passenger was sitting in a cockpit jump seat during the flight. The investigating commission also found lack of proper pilot training in the airline. Flight 710 was the second of four Widerøe accidents between 1982 and 1993, all of which revealed shortcomings in the airline's operations and internal control. The accident aircraft

3388-652: The excellent operating economics of the Twin Otter allowed airlines large and small to provide scheduled passenger flights to communities that most likely would otherwise never have received air service. Twin Otters are also a staple of Antarctic transportation. Four Twin Otters are employed by the British Antarctic Survey on research and supply flights, and several are employed by the United States Antarctic Program via contract with Kenn Borek Air . On 24–25 April 2001, two Twin Otters performed

3465-449: The factory with floats , skis , or tricycle landing gear fittings, making them adaptable bush planes for remote and northern areas. Areas including Canada and the United States, (specifically Alaska ) had much of the demand. Many Twin Otters still serve in the Arctic and subarctic , but they can also be found in Africa, Australia, Asia, Antarctica, and other regions where bush planes are

3542-429: The first officer and resulted in the aircraft gaining 70 m (230 ft) of altitude. The landing gears were confirmed locked at 20:28:00. Four seconds later the passenger asked the captain if there were reserve systems which could be used if the landing gear did not deploy properly. At this point the aircraft started the descent from 500 m (1,600 ft). AFIS asked for the aircraft's position at 20:28:10, and

3619-402: The first officer responded at 20:28:13 that it was 8 NM (15 km; 9 mi) away. He asked AFIS for a wind check, and AFIS responded that it was from 220 degrees and 8 kn (15 km/h; 9 mph). The first officer confirmed the information at 20:28:24. The aircraft reached 170 m (560 ft) altitude and remained at that height for the rest of the flight. A short conversation

3696-516: The first winter flight to Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station to perform a medical evacuation. On 21–22 June 2016, Kenn Borek Air's Twin Otters performed the third winter evacuation flight to Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station to remove two people for medical reasons. The Argentine Air Force has used the Twin Otter in Antarctica since the 1970s, with at least one of them deployed year-round at Marambio Base . The Chilean Air Force has operated

3773-536: The fourth-deadliest by Vnukovo Airlines Flight 2801 . It remains the deadliest accident in Northern Norway. The commission recommended that Widerøe update its maps for Brønnøysund, review and improve its landing procedures, improve its internal control procedures to ensure that pilots follow the airline's flight operation regulations, and introduce the Sterile Cockpit Rule. The commission recommended that

3850-491: The improved reliability of turboprop power and the improved performance of a twin-engine configuration made it an immediately popular alternative to the piston-powered Otter which had been flying since 1951. The first six aircraft produced were designated Series 1, indicating that they were prototype aircraft. The initial production run consisted of Series 100 aircraft, serial numbers seven to 115 inclusive. In 1968, Series 200 production began with serial number 116. Changes made at

3927-408: The lack of proper cockpit procedures, especially regarding callouts. There were no technical faults to the aircraft, and the pilots had full control of the aircraft at the time of the collision, making it a controlled flight into terrain. Interviews with random pilots in Widerøe showed that the airline had shortcomings in its training procedures, in part because it lacked a Dash 7 simulator . There

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4004-433: The mountain. The aircraft was supposed to have levelled out at 750 metres (2,460 feet), but instead this took place at 500 metres (1,600 feet). The next descent was started at 8 NM (15 km; 9 mi) instead of 4 NM (7 km; 5 mi) from the airport and the aircraft thus came under permitted altitude. The aircraft was using instrument flight rules (IFR) and Torghatten was covered in fog. The visibility

4081-422: The operations. The first officer did not participate in this discussion, and it was he who conducted radio contact with air traffic control and the airline's operations center. The first officer contacted the airline at 20:16 and informed that they expected to arrive at 20:32. At 20:20:29, the aircraft asked permission from Trondheim ATCC to switch to Brønnøysund Aerodrome Flight Information Service (AFIS), which

4158-423: The optimum means of travel. Their versatility and manoeuvrability have made them popular in areas with difficult flying environments such as Papua New Guinea . In Norway, the Twin Otter paved the way for the network of short-field airports, connecting rural areas with larger towns. The Twin Otter showed outstanding reliability, and remained in service until 2000 on certain routes. Widerøe of Norway was, at one time,

4235-440: The passenger occupying the jump seat continued to sit there on the next leg. The captain was the pilot flying for the segment. The aircraft departed Namsos at 20:07 and contacted Trondheim Air Traffic Control Center (ATCC) at 20:13 to receive permission to ascend to flight level 90 (FL 90), which was received. During the flight, the passenger in the jump seat held a conversation with the captain and asked several questions regarding

4312-419: The passenger's conversation with the captain drew his attention and concentration away from his duties at a critical point of the flight. This also disrupted communication between the two pilots, resulting in the mutual control being disrupted. The aircraft crashed into Torghatten, which is located 5 NM (9 km; 6 mi) south-west of Brønnøysund Airport. The mountain is 271 metres (889 feet) tall and

4389-477: The police concluded their investigations at Torghatten on 13 May. In May 2013 the investigation board was made aware that two passengers each had their Mobira NMT-450 mobile telephone with them on the flights. As this had not been mentioned in the original report, AIBN conducted a review of the issue and especially if the telephones could have influenced the vertical navigation. They concluded in December that this

4466-406: The port wing to break between the engines. At the same time the aircraft's body was broken in two. The aircraft's forward movement stopped, the wreck pieces rotated with the vertical stabilizer away from the mountain-side, the port wing caught on fire and exploded and the rest of the aircraft fell down the slope. On the way down, the starboard wing caught on fire. The commission found the cause of

4543-478: The salvage. The Accident Investigation Board Norway was informed about the accident at 21:10. Four members of the investigation commission were appointed, consisting of leader Lieutenant General Wilhelm Mohr , Pilot Hallvard Vikholt, Lieutenant Colonel Asbjørn Stein and Chief-of-Police Arnstein Øverkil. Because of poor weather conditions, the commission was not assembled in Brønnøy until 15:00 on 7 May. The same day

4620-450: The sand. The Twin Otter is also used for landing at Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport , the world's shortest commercial runway, on the Caribbean island of Saba , Netherlands Antilles . The Twin Otter has been popular with commercial skydiving operations. It can carry up to 22 skydivers to over 5,200 m (17,000 ft) (a large load compared to most other aircraft in the industry); presently,

4697-606: The single-engine DHC-3 Otter retaining the DHC-3's STOL qualities, its design features included double-slotted trailing-edge flaps and ailerons that work in unison with the flaps to boost STOL performance. The availability of the 550 shaft horsepower (410 kW) Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-20 turboprop in the early 1960s made the concept of a twin feasible. A DHC-3 Otter with its piston engine replaced with two PT6A-4 engines had already flown in 1963. It had been extensively modified for STOL research. To bush plane operators,

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4774-446: The training and operating procedures. All checklists during the flight were followed correctly. However, the pilots did not elect a method of double-control of the descent and approach, such as by using briefings and callouts. The pilots had several non-compliances to regulations in their descent. This included using "Torghatten" during the captain's briefing, despite no marking on the map using this name, nor one being located close to

4851-560: The type since 1980, usually having an example based at Presidente Frei Antarctic base of the South Shetland Islands . Alfredo Stroessner , Paraguayan head of state from 1954 until 1989, used a Twin Otter as a presidential aircraft; although the Twin Otter remained in the Paraguayan Air Force inventory after he was deposed, subsequent presidents switched to other, private aircraft for official duties. As of August 2006,

4928-478: The world's largest operator of Twin Otters. During one period of its tenure in Norway, the Twin Otter fleet achieved over 96,000 cycles (take-off, flight, and landing) per year. A number of commuter airlines in the United States got their start by operating Twin Otters in scheduled passenger operations. Houston Metro Airlines (which later changed its name to Metro Airlines ) constructed their own STOLport airstrip with

5005-593: Was 28 years old and had worked for Widerøe since 1983. The aircraft had been used during the morning of May 6 on a multi-leg flight from Bodø Airport to Trondheim Airport, Værnes and back. It had then flown back to Trondheim where it changed crew. They had arrived at Trondheim with a flight at 18:50 on May 5 and left the hotel in Trondheim at 16:15 on May 6. Flight 710 was scheduled to fly from Trondheim via Namsos Airport , Høknesøra ; Brønnøysund Airport , Brønnøy; and Sandnessjøen Airport , Stokka . It departed Værnes after

5082-545: Was US$ 680,000, In 1976, a new -300 would have cost $ 700,000 ($ 3 million 31 years later) and is still worth more than $ 2.5 million in 2018 despite the -400 introduction, many years after the -300 production ceased. 844 had been produced by the time the first production end run ended in 1988. After Series 300 production ended, the remaining tooling was purchased by Viking Air of Victoria, British Columbia , which manufactures replacement parts for out-of-production de Havilland Canada aircraft. On 24 February 2006, Viking purchased

5159-400: Was a culture in the airline to deviate from cockpit procedures and cooperation. The flight plans often made procedures for mutual control of procedures impractical, and they were commonly skipped. The commission was of the impression that Widerøe's transition from an all-Twin Otter airline to also operate the more demanding Dash 7 was not properly carried out, which had resultant shortcomings in

5236-435: Was a four-engine de Havilland Canada DHC-7 Dash 7 Series 102, with serial number 28, built in 1980. It was bought used by Widerøe in 1985 and registered as LN-WFN on 8 November 1985. Its certificate of airworthiness was last renewed on 4 November 1987 and was valid until 30 November 1988. The aircraft had operated 16,934 hours and 32,347 cycles prior to its last flight. The last A-check took place on 15 April 1988, after which

5313-500: Was about 24 aircraft per year. In April 2015, Viking announced a reduction of the production rate to 18 aircraft per year. On 17 June 2015, Viking announced a partnership with a Chinese firm, Reignwood Aviation Group ; the group would purchase 50 aircraft and become the exclusive supplier of new Series 400 Twin Otters in China. Major changes introduced with the Series 400 include Honeywell Primus Apex fully integrated avionics , deletion of

5390-620: Was also served with scheduled airline flights operated with Twin Otter aircraft. The Walt Disney World Airport , also known as the Lake Buena Vista STOLport, was a private airfield constructed by The Walt Disney Company with Twin Otter operations in mind. In the early 1970s, Shawnee Airlines operated scheduled Twin Otter flights between the Disney resort and nearby Orlando Jetport, now Orlando International Airport , as well as to Tampa International Airport . This service by Shawnee Airlines

5467-470: Was granted. The aircraft announced at 20:20:42 that they would start the descent and would switch to Brønnøysund AFIS. Contact was made at 20:22:34, at which time the aircraft announced it was 25 NM (46 km; 29 mi) from the airport and at FL 80. AFIS informed that there were no known aircraft in the area and that runway 22 was in use; wind was 5 kn (9 km/h; 6 mph) from southeast, 5 nautical miles (9.3 kilometres; 5.8 miles) visibility,

5544-455: Was initiated by the passenger at 20:28:55. Three seconds later, the captain asked for "25 degrees flaps and props fully fine". This was confirmed by the first officer two seconds later. The pre-landing checklist was completed between 20:29:04 and :19. The autopilot had been used since 25 seconds after take-off from Namsos and was used for the remainder of the flight. From 20:29:21 all four engines showed increasing torque and immediately before

5621-626: Was introduced, beginning with serial number 231. Both aircraft performance and payload were improved by fitting more powerful PT6A-27 engines. This was a 680 hp (510 kW) engine that was flat rated to 620 hp (460 kW) for use in the Series 300 Twin Otter. The Series 300 proved to be the most successful variant by far, with 614 Series 300 aircraft and their subvariants (Series 310 for United Kingdom operators, Series 320 for Australian operators, etc.) sold before production in Toronto by de Havilland Canada ended in 1988. In 1972, its unit cost

5698-525: Was not the case, as there were no indications of interferences and that there are no instances where electromagnetic interference has been a contributing cause to an aviation accident. Flight 710 was the second fatal and write-off accident of a Dash 7, and remains the deadliest. It was at the time the third-deadliest aviation accident in Norwegian history, after the 1961 Holtaheia Vickers Viking crash and Braathens SAFE Flight 239 in 1972. It has since become

5775-477: Was restarting production of the Twin Otter, equipped with more powerful Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 engines. As of November 2007, 40 firm orders and 10 options had been taken and a new final assembly plant was established in Calgary , Alberta . Zimex Aviation of Switzerland received the first new production aircraft, serial number 845, in July 2010. By mid-2014, Viking had built 55 new aircraft at its Calgary facility. The production rate as of summer 2014

5852-473: Was tested by the Civil Aviation Administration on 7 May and found to be working correctly. AIBN established a base of operations at the hangar at Brønnøysund Airport and used a helicopter to freight the pieces of the wreck there and bodies to Trondheim University Hospital for identification. Technical investigations started on 9 May. The aircraft was equipped with a flight data recorder and

5929-412: Was within the permitted range of IFR. The commission found five errors on Widerøe's maps which could have influenced the accident. This included a formulation which gave the impression that DMR was not in use; a closed "Torget" marker beacon was still on the maps; a vertical flight plan from Lekan was not included; the height limitations in the accident area were noted through comments rather than through

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