Viking Air Limited — Guardians of the de Havilland Canada Legacy
When the great names of Canadian aviation history fall silent, someone must keep the flame. For the entire de Havilland Canada family — from the bush-flying Beaver to the STOL Dash 7 — that custodian is Viking Air Limited of Sidney, British Columbia. A company that began as a regional parts supplier became, through a series of decisive acquisitions, the legal and technical heir to one of the most beloved aircraft families ever built.
Origins: Sidney, British Columbia
Viking Air was founded in 1970 in Sidney, BC — a small community on the Saanich Peninsula north of Victoria, with a long tradition of float plane and bush aviation culture. The company began as a specialist in parts manufacture and support for legacy aircraft types, serving the float plane operators, bush carriers, and utility aviation companies of western Canada and Alaska who depended on aging DHC fleets.
For decades, Viking built its reputation quietly — supplying hard-to-find structural components, floats, and airframe parts for DHC-2 Beavers and DHC-3 Otters that continued flying long after de Havilland Canada itself had ceased production of those types.
The Type Certificate Acquisitions: 2006
In 2006, Viking made the move that transformed it from a parts supplier into a custodian of Canadian aviation heritage. The company acquired the type certificates for all out-of-production de Havilland Canada aircraft from Bombardier Aerospace:
- DHC-1 Chipmunk — the postwar trainer that taught a generation of Commonwealth pilots to fly
- DHC-2 Beaver — arguably the greatest bush plane ever built; over 1,600 produced
- DHC-3 Otter — the Beaver's larger sibling, the workhorse of remote operations worldwide
- DHC-4 Caribou — STOL tactical transport, widely used by military operators
- DHC-5 Buffalo — twin-turboprop STOL military transport, still in service with several air forces
- DHC-6 Twin Otter — the definitive utility twin turboprop; over 800 Series 100/200/300 built
- DHC-7 Dash 7 — the four-engine STOL regional airliner, a masterpiece of quiet, short-field performance
Owning the type certificate means owning the legal authority to issue airworthiness data, approve modifications, manufacture spare parts, and support the global fleet. Viking became, overnight, the official technical authority for thousands of aircraft still flying worldwide.
Restarting Production: The DHC-6 Twin Otter Series 400
Most companies that acquire out-of-production type certificates use them defensively — to support existing fleets and sell parts. Viking did something far more ambitious: they restarted production.
In 2010, Viking launched the DHC-6 Twin Otter Series 400 — a modernised variant of the classic Series 300, featuring:
- Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 engines — the same proven powerplant as the Series 300, ensuring operator familiarity
- Garmin G950 glass cockpit — modern avionics in the classic airframe
- Updated cabin — improved passenger comfort and noise reduction
- Retained STOL performance — the Series 400 maintains the short-field capability that made the Twin Otter legendary
The Series 400 found immediate customers among Maldivian seaplane operators, Arctic carriers, regional airlines in Papua New Guinea, and humanitarian operators worldwide — exactly the environments where the Twin Otter has always been irreplaceable. Production continues to this day.
The de Havilland Canada Brand: 2016
In 2016, Viking completed its transformation by acquiring the de Havilland Canada brand and trademark from Bombardier — the name itself, not just the type certificates. Viking now owns the right to use the de Havilland Canada name on new products and documentation.
This was a significant cultural moment for Canadian aviation. The de Havilland Canada name — which had produced some of the most iconic aircraft in history from its Downsview, Ontario plant — returned to Canadian hands, held by a company whose entire purpose was to honour and perpetuate that legacy.
Longview Aviation: The Parent Company
Viking Air operates as part of Longview Aviation Capital, a Victoria, BC-based holding company that also owns:
- Pacific Coastal Airlines — a BC regional carrier operating, naturally, DHC-6 Twin Otters and other types
- Wilderness Seaplanes — float plane operations in coastal BC
- Central Mountain Air — regional carrier serving northern BC communities
The Longview group represents a uniquely integrated Canadian aviation ecosystem: the company that holds the type certificates also operates the aircraft, giving Viking unparalleled real-world insight into fleet support requirements.
OAL Documentation Note: Pre-Viking DHC Manuals
The Online Aviation Library holds a collection of pre-Viking de Havilland Canada documentation — original factory manuals, maintenance publications, parts catalogs, and technical data issued during the active production years of the DHC fleet under de Havilland Canada and subsequently Bombardier.
These are archival, static-copy editions fixed at their original publication dates. They document the DHC aircraft as they were designed and built — primary-source engineering history of the highest order.
⚠️ Regulatory Notice: Under FAA 14 CFR § 43.13 and EASA Part-M, any mechanic performing maintenance on an active aircraft must use current, manufacturer-approved revision-controlled data. For active DHC fleet support, current airworthiness documentation is issued by Viking Air Limited as the type certificate holder. OAL archival documents do not satisfy that requirement.
This archival documentation is intended for historical reference, flight simulation, museum restoration, and educational use only.
Legacy
Viking Air's story is one of the most quietly remarkable in modern aviation. Without fanfare, a small British Columbia company stepped forward to ensure that the Beaver, the Otter, the Twin Otter, and their siblings would never be orphaned — that the knowledge embedded in their type certificates would be preserved, that spare parts would remain available, and that new aircraft bearing the de Havilland Canada name would continue to fly.
The bush pilots of the Yukon, the seaplane operators of the Maldives, the medevac crews of northern Ontario — all of them fly with greater confidence because Viking Air exists. That is a legacy worth honouring.
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