Wideroe deHavilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
Wideroe is named for its founder, Viggo Wideroe, who began the company in February 1934 using a single Simmonds Spartan. Wideroe wanted to get Norwegians interested in aviation, and so he used his Spartan for airshows in the summer. To supplement his income, during the winter, he would fly skiers into Norway's wilderness areas. Wideroe made enough money to buy a few other small aircraft, and wisely began to diversify his company: besides his other flights, Wideroe began to offer aerial photography and cartography, seaplane service to isolated communities on Norway's coast, and flying cruise ship passengers down the fjords.
World War II and the German occupation of Norway shut down Wideroe during the war, but the company quickly reestablished itself postwar. While it began to transition into scheduled airline service, aerial cartography and air ambulance flights remained important facets of Wideroe's business. It also operated one of the world's most diverse fleets: at one time in the 1950s, Wideroe was flying deHavilland Canada DHC-2 Beavers, war surplus Junkers Ju 52s, ex-RNAF Airspeed Oxfords, and former USAF RB-26 Invaders. It is worth noting that Wideroe only acquired their first Douglas DC-3, a staple of postwar air carriers, in 1962.
Wideroe himself retired in 1970, but by that time, his company had sold off all other divisions to concentrate on regional airline service. Here, it was subsidized by the Norwegian government, as Wideroe, with its extensive experience in "bush" piloting, could best provide communities cut off otherwise from the rest of Norway with essential air service. Wideroe began to standardize on the DHC-6 Twin Otter, and later the Dash 7. So small were Wideroe's aircraft and so short their flights that, when the Dash 7s were bought in 1983, the airline had to hire flight attendants for the first time.
Today, Wideroe continues to exist. It operated most of SAS Commuter's routes in northern and central Norway, and for a time SAS owned the controlling interest in the company, though in 2013 it sold that interest to a consortium of Norwegian investors. The airline has expanded beyond Norway to routes in Sweden, the UK and Denmark, and today only flies Bombardier Q400s.
This Twin Otter shows Wideroe's livery in the 1980s. It is equipped as a seaplane, with floats instead of wheels.
Wideroe deHavilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
Wideroe is named for its founder, Viggo Wideroe, who began the company in February 1934 using a single Simmonds Spartan. Wideroe wanted to get Norwegians interested in aviation, and so he used his Spartan for airshows in the summer. To supplement his income, during the winter, he would fly skiers into Norway's wilderness areas. Wideroe made enough money to buy a few other small aircraft, and wisely began to diversify his company: besides his other flights, Wideroe began to offer aerial photography and cartography, seaplane service to isolated communities on Norway's coast, and flying cruise ship passengers down the fjords.
World War II and the German occupation of Norway shut down Wideroe during the war, but the company quickly reestablished itself postwar. While it began to transition into scheduled airline service, aerial cartography and air ambulance flights remained important facets of Wideroe's business. It also operated one of the world's most diverse fleets: at one time in the 1950s, Wideroe was flying deHavilland Canada DHC-2 Beavers, war surplus Junkers Ju 52s, ex-RNAF Airspeed Oxfords, and former USAF RB-26 Invaders. It is worth noting that Wideroe only acquired their first Douglas DC-3, a staple of postwar air carriers, in 1962.
Wideroe himself retired in 1970, but by that time, his company had sold off all other divisions to concentrate on regional airline service. Here, it was subsidized by the Norwegian government, as Wideroe, with its extensive experience in "bush" piloting, could best provide communities cut off otherwise from the rest of Norway with essential air service. Wideroe began to standardize on the DHC-6 Twin Otter, and later the Dash 7. So small were Wideroe's aircraft and so short their flights that, when the Dash 7s were bought in 1983, the airline had to hire flight attendants for the first time.
Today, Wideroe continues to exist. It operated most of SAS Commuter's routes in northern and central Norway, and for a time SAS owned the controlling interest in the company, though in 2013 it sold that interest to a consortium of Norwegian investors. The airline has expanded beyond Norway to routes in Sweden, the UK and Denmark, and today only flies Bombardier Q400s.
This Twin Otter shows Wideroe's livery in the 1980s. It is equipped as a seaplane, with floats instead of wheels.