De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited is an
aircraft manufacturer
An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of designing, building, testing, selling, and maintaining aircraft, aircraft parts, missiles, rockets, or spacecraft. Aerospace is a high technology industry.
...
with facilities formerly based in the
Downsview
Downsview is a neighbourhood in the north end of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located in the district of North York. The area takes its name from the Downs View farm established around 1842 near the present-day intersection of Keele Street and Wilso ...
area of
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. The original home of de Havilland Canada was the home of the
Canadian Air and Space Museum
The Canadian Air and Space Conservancy (formerly the Toronto Aerospace Museum and the Canadian Air and Space Museum) was an aviation museum that was located in Toronto, Ontario, featuring artifacts, exhibits and stories illustrating a century of ...
located in what is now
Downsview Park
Downsview Park is a large urban park located in the Downsview neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The park's name is officially bilingual due to it being federally owned and managed, and was first home to de Havilland Canada, an aircra ...
.
The aircraft company was created in 1928 by the British
de Havilland Aircraft Company
The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited () was a British aviation manufacturer established in late 1920 by Geoffrey de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome Edgware on the outskirts of north London. Operations were later moved to Hatfield in H ...
to build
Moth
Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...
aircraft for
the training of Canadian airmen, and subsequently after the Second World War, designed and produced indigenous designs.
In the 1980s, the
government of Canada
The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...
under Prime Minister
Brian Mulroney
Martin Brian Mulroney ( ; born March 20, 1939) is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993.
Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studied political sci ...
privatized DHC and in 1986 sold the aircraft company to then
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
-based
Boeing
The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product ...
.
DHC was eventually acquired by
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
-based
Bombardier Aerospace
Bombardier Aviation is a division of Bombardier Inc. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada. Its most popular aircraft included the Dash 8 Series 400, CRJ100/200/440, and CRJ700/900/1000 lines of regional airliners, and the newer CS ...
in 1992.
In 2006,
Viking Air
Viking Air Ltd. is a manufacturer of aircraft, as well as aircraft parts and systems, based at Victoria International Airport in North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The company produces new versions of the DHC-6 Twin Otter, upgraded versi ...
of
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. Th ...
, purchased the
type certificate
A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). It confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production, is in compliance with applica ...
s for all the original out-of-production de Havilland designs (DHC-1 to DHC-7).
In November 2018, Viking Air's holding company,
Longview Aviation Capital
Viking Air Ltd. is a manufacturer of aircraft, as well as aircraft parts and systems, based at Victoria International Airport in North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The company produces new versions of the DHC-6 Twin Otter, upgraded ver ...
, announced the acquisition of the
Q400
The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was later bought by Boeing in 1988, then by Bombardier in 1992; then by ...
program, along with the rights to the de Havilland name and trademark. The deal, which closed on 3 June 2019 following regulatory approval, brought the entire de Havilland product line under the same banner for the first time in decades, under a new holding company named De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited.
In the summer of 2021, De Havilland stopped production at its Downsview site and officially closed it in the summer of 2022 at the end of its lease. In September 2022, De Haviland announced the construction of a new manufacturing facility called De Havilland Field in
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
. The new facility is intended to merge its two manufacturing facilities and produce the Twin Otter and Dash 8 planes. First production at the new site is scheduled to begin in 2025.
Establishment
Founded in 1928 as a subsidiary of de Havilland Aircraft (UK), de Havilland Canada was first located at
De Lesseps Field
De Lesseps Field was a small, but important airfield in early aviation in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Opened sometime before 1910, an airfield was created from three farms by engineer William Griffith Trethewey (1865–1926). The airfield was locat ...
in Toronto, before moving to
Downsview Airport
Downsview Airport was located in the North York district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. An air field, then air force base, it had been a testing facility for Bombardier Aerospace from 1994 to 2018. Bombardier has sold the facility and manufacturi ...
in 1929.
Pre-Second World War
![CF-CTN](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/CF-CTN.jpg)
Flown for the first time on 26 October 1931, the
DH.82 Tiger Moth was derived from the
DH.60 Moth. The DH 82 was powered by a 120-hp
Gipsy II engine, but the 1939 DH.82a received the 145-hp
Gipsy Major. More than 1,000 Tiger Moths were delivered before the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and subsequently 4,005 were built in the UK and shipped all over the world; 1,747 were built in Canada (the majority being the DH.82c model with enclosed cockpits, brakes, tail wheels, etc.). The follow-up
DH.83 Fox Moth was designed in England in 1932 as a light, economical transport and was built using as many Tiger Moth components as possible.
Second World War
The de Havilland Tiger Moth was a basic trainer of the
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), or Empire Air Training Scheme (EATS) often referred to as simply "The Plan", was a massive, joint military aircrew training program created by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zea ...
during the Second World War, whereby air crews from all over the
British Commonwealth
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...
trained in Canada. DHC was the Canadian unit of the parent British
de Havilland
The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited () was a British aviation manufacturer established in late 1920 by Geoffrey de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome Edgware on the outskirts of north London. Operations were later moved to Hatfield in H ...
and during World War II was made into a
crown corporation
A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the governmen ...
of the
government of Canada
The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...
.
Production of the
Mosquito
Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning " gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "li ...
, nicknamed the "Mossie", was the company's greatest contribution to the war effort. It was one of the few front-line aircraft of the era constructed almost entirely of wood and was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder". The Mosquito was designed to use speed instead of defensive armament to evade attack, and as a result, it was one of the fastest aircraft in the war, reaching 425 mph at 30,000 ft. The original design was intended as a light bomber, but soon proved itself in high-level photography and every phase of intruder operations.
Of the more than 7,000 Mosquitoes produced overall by de Havilland, de Havilland Canada produced 1,134. Some 500 were delivered to the UK by the end of the war, although several were lost en route across the Atlantic.
Post-war era
After the war, de Havilland Canada began to build its own designs uniquely suited to the harsh Canadian operating environment. The company also continued production of several British de Havilland aircraft and later produced a licence-built version of the American-designed
Grumman S2F Tracker
The Grumman S-2 Tracker (S2F prior to 1962) was the first purpose-built, single airframe anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft to enter service with the United States Navy. Designed and initially built by Grumman, the Tracker was of conventiona ...
. In 1962, the
Avro Canada
Avro Canada was a Canadian aircraft manufacturing company. It was founded in 1945 as an aircraft plant and within 13 years became the third-largest company in Canada, one of the largest 100 companies in the world, and directly employing over 5 ...
aircraft production facility was transferred to de Havilland Canada by their then-merged parent company, UK-based
Hawker Siddeley
Hawker Siddeley was a group of British manufacturing companies engaged in aircraft production. Hawker Siddeley combined the legacies of several British aircraft manufacturers, emerging through a series of mergers and acquisitions as one of onl ...
.
DHC-1 Chipmunk
![RCAF Chipmunk 18041](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/RCAF_Chipmunk_18041.jpg)
The first true
postwar aviation
The period between 1945 and 1979 is sometimes called the post-war era or the period of the post-war political consensus. During this period, aviation was dominated by the arrival of the Jet Age. In civil aviation the jet engine allowed a huge expa ...
project was the DHC-1 Chipmunk, designed as a
primary trainer
A trainer is a class of aircraft designed specifically to facilitate flight training of pilots and aircrews. The use of a dedicated trainer aircraft with additional safety features—such as tandem flight controls, forgiving flight characterist ...
, a replacement for the venerable Tiger Moth. The Chipmunk was an all-metal, low-wing,
tandem
Tandem, or in tandem, is an arrangement in which a team of machines, animals or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction.
The original use of the term in English was in ''tandem harness'', which is used for two ...
two-place, single-engined airplane with a
conventional landing gear
Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Term ...
, powered by a
de Havilland Gipsy Major
The de Havilland Gipsy Major or Gipsy IIIA is a four-cylinder, air-cooled, inverted inline engine used in a variety of light aircraft produced in the 1930s, including the famous Tiger Moth biplane. Many Gipsy Major engines still power vintag ...
engine. The Chipmunk prototype first flew on 22 May 1946 in Toronto. DHC built 217 in Canada, and it was also produced under licence by de Havilland in the UK, which produced 1,000, and by
OGMA
OGMA – Indústria Aeronáutica de Portugal S.A. is a Portuguese aerospace company focused on aircraft maintenance and manufacturing.
History
OGMA was founded as part of the reorganisation of the Portuguese Army's Aeronautic Service on June 2 ...
in Portugal, which built an additional 66. The Chipmunk served with the RCAF, the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
(RAF), and at least twelve other air forces. After being largely phased out by the RAF and RCAF in the 1950s and 1960s, surplus Chipmunks achieved widespread popularity for civil sport flying, competition
aerobatics
Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glid ...
,
aerial application
Aerial application, or what is informally referred to as crop dusting, involves spraying crops with crop protection products from an agricultural aircraft. Planting certain types of seed are also included in aerial application. The specific sp ...
, and
glider towing
Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sports, air sport in which pilots fly glider aircraft, unpowered aircraft known as Glider (sailplane), gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmospher ...
.
DHC-2 Beaver
![Whistler Air De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver at Vancouver Harbour Water Airport](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Whistler_Air_De_Havilland_Canada_DHC-2_Beaver_at_Vancouver_Harbour_Water_Airport.jpg)
Developed in 1947 for
bush flying
Bush flying refers to aircraft operations carried out in the bush. Bush flying involves operations in rough terrain where there are often no prepared landing strips or runways, frequently necessitating that bush planes be equipped with abnormally ...
, the DHC-2 Beaver was designed with input from Canada's bush pilots, who desired a rugged and highly versatile "aerial truck" that would reliably deliver
short takeoff and landing
A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a conventional fixed-wing aircraft that has short runway requirements for takeoff and landing. Many STOL-designed aircraft also feature various arrangements for use on airstrips with harsh condition ...
(STOL) performance from unimproved airstrips with a half-ton load. An all-metal,
high wing
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes.
A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing confi ...
monoplane, the Beaver could be equipped with wheels, skis, or floats, and was originally powered by a single
Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Junior
The Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Junior is a series of nine-cylinder, air-cooled, radial aircraft engines built by the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company from the 1930s to the 1950s. These engines have a displacement of ; initial versions produced , ...
piston engine. The Beaver was soon adopted by the
US Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
(USAF) and
US Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
as a
liaison aircraft
A liaison aircraft (also called an army cooperation aircraft) is a small, usually unarmed aircraft primarily used by military forces for artillery observation or transporting commanders and messages. The concept developed before World War II and ...
, remaining in service well into the 1970s, and was also used by the militaries of numerous other nations, including Britain, Chile, and Colombia. With almost 1,700 built in a production run lasting two decades, civil Beavers continue plying their trade in many countries around the world. A
turboprop
A turboprop is a turbine engine that drives an aircraft propeller.
A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction gearbox, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propelling nozzle. Air enters the intake and is compressed by the compressor. Fuel ...
conversion, the Turbo Beaver first flew in December 1963, featuring a
Pratt & Whitney PT6A
The Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 is a turboprop aircraft engine produced by Pratt & Whitney Canada.
Its design was started in 1958, it first ran in February 1960, first flew on 30 May 1961, entered service in 1964 and has been continuously upda ...
engine. The Turbo Beaver offered improved operating weights and STOL performance, along with a longer cabin, allowing maximum accommodation for 11 including the pilot. DHC offered turboprop conversion kits to upgrade piston-powered Beavers, and similar conversions have been performed by aftermarket companies.
DHC-3 Otter
![DeHavilland Single Otter Harbour Air](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/DeHavilland_Single_Otter_Harbour_Air.jpg)
A follow-on design to the Beaver—originally conceived in 1951 as the King Beaver—the DHC-3 Otter was designed for the same basic roles and is similar in layout, but is a substantially larger and heavier aircraft, a veritable "one-ton truck" that can seat up to eleven. The Otter was originally produced with a 450-kW (600-hp)
Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp
The Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp is an aircraft engine of the reciprocating type that was widely used in American aircraft from the 1920s onward. It was the Pratt & Whitney aircraft company's first engine, and the first of the famed Wasp series ...
radial engine, and like the Beaver, the Otter can be fitted with skis and floats; the Otter
amphibian
Amphibians are tetrapod, four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the Class (biology), class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terres ...
features unique four-unit retractable undercarriage, with the wheels retracting into the floats. The type's first flight was undertaken on 12 December 1951 and Canadian certification was awarded in November 1952. The US Army became the largest user of the Otter, and other military users included Australia, Canada, and India. Some Otters have been converted to turboprop power by Cox Air Services using a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A turboprop, yielding a lower empty weight and a higher maximum speed, and a number of other aftermarket PT6A conversions have been offered. The Otter found a significant niche as a STOL bush aircraft and many remain in service.
DHC-4 Caribou
![C-7 Caribou](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/C-7_Caribou.jpg)
The DHC-4 Caribou was a rugged STOL design like the Beaver and Otter, but it had two engines and was conceived primarily as a military transport, designed in response to a US Army requirement for a
tactical airlifter
An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies or personnel primarily via military transport aircraft.
Airlifting consists of two distinct types: strategic and tactical. Typically, strategic airlifting involves moving material long distance ...
to supply the battlefront with troops and supplies and evacuate casualties on the return journey. The DHC-4 first flew on 30 July 1958. The US Army ordered five for evaluation and went on to become the largest Caribou operator, taking delivery of 159, initially as the AC-1 and later as the CV-2. These aircraft were transferred to the USAF in 1967 and redesignated as the C-7, seeing extensive service during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
, where some were captured by North Vietnamese forces and operated until the late 1970s. Other notable military operators included Canada, Australia, Malaysia, India, and Spain. The type's ruggedness and STOL capabilities also appealed to some commercial users and US certification was awarded on 23 December 1960. Other Caribou entered commercial service after being retired by the military, and some civil Caribou have been fitted with turboprop engines.
DHC-5 Buffalo
![DehavillandCC-115Buffalo12](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/DehavillandCC-115Buffalo12.JPG)
Known originally as the Caribou II, the DHC-5 Buffalo was basically an enlarged DHC-4 with turboprop engines and a
T-tail
A T-tail is an empennage configuration in which the tailplane is mounted to the top of the fin. The arrangement looks like the capital letter T, hence the name. The T-tail differs from the standard configuration in which the tailplane is ...
, developed to meet a US Army requirement for a STOL tactical airlifter with greater load-carrying ability than the DHC-4. The Buffalo made its maiden flight on 9 April 1964, but the US Army soon transferred heavy fixed-wing aircraft operations to the USAF, which had little interest in the Buffalo; only four evaluation aircraft were delivered to the US military, two of which were later transferred to
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
for research. The improved DHC-5A transport was acquired by
Canadian Armed Forces
}
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force.
...
(as the CC-115), the
Brazilian Air Force
"Wings that protect the country"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march = Hino dos Aviadores
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 22 May (anniver ...
and the
Peruvian Air Force
The Peruvian Air Force ( es, link=no, Fuerza Aérea del Perú, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguardin ...
, and the production line was then shut down, but it was reopened after the enhanced DHC-5D was introduced in response to interest by other military users. In the early 1980s, de Havilland Canada attempted to market the Buffalo for civil use as the "Transporter", but the demonstration aircraft crashed at the 1984
Farnborough Airshow
The Farnborough Airshow, officially the Farnborough International Airshow, is a trade exhibition for the aerospace and defence industries, where civilian and military aircraft are demonstrated to potential customers and investors. Since its fir ...
and the project was abandoned.
DHC-6 Twin Otter
![Twin Otter 4 1997-08-02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Twin_Otter_4_1997-08-02.jpg)
One of Canada's most successful commercial aircraft designs with more than 800 built, the Twin Otter remains popular for its rugged construction and STOL capabilities. Development dates back to January 1964, when DHC commenced work on a twin turboprop variant of the DHC-3 Otter as a STOL commuter airliner and utility transport. The wings were lengthened, the rear fuselage, tail, and nose were redesigned, and seating capacity was increased to 18. Design features included double-slotted trailing-edge flaps and
flaperon
A flaperon (a portmanteau of flap and aileron) on an aircraft's wing is a type of control surface that combines the functions of both flaps and ailerons. Some smaller kitplanes have flaperons for reasons of simplicity of manufacture, while s ...
s (ailerons that act in unison with the flaps) to boost STOL performance. The type's first flight on 20 May 1965. After receiving certification in mid-1966, the first Twin Otter variant, the Series 100, entered service with the Ontario Department of Lands and Forests. The Series 200, introduced in April 1968, had an extended nose and reconfigured rear cabin storage compartment, greatly increasing cargo space. The Series 300, introduced in 1969, had more powerful engines, allowing a 450-kg (1,000-lb) increase in takeoff weight and a 20-seat interior. All models can be fitted with skis or floats. DHC production ceased in late 1988, but in 2010,
Viking Air
Viking Air Ltd. is a manufacturer of aircraft, as well as aircraft parts and systems, based at Victoria International Airport in North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The company produces new versions of the DHC-6 Twin Otter, upgraded versi ...
restarted Twin Otter production with the introduction of the Series 400. Production was suspended during the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
; in July 2022, the company announced that it was reviewing the programme and supply chain, with a decision on when to resume production expected "in the near future".
DHC-7 Dash 7
![Arkia de Havilland Canada DHC-7 4X-AHH](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Arkia_de_Havilland_Canada_DHC-7_4X-AHH.jpg)
The four-engined DHC-7, popularly known as the Dash 7, was designed as a STOL 50-seat
regional airliner
A regional airliner or a feederliner is a small airliner that is designed to fly up to 100 passengers on short-haul flights, usually feeding larger carriers' airline hubs from small markets. This class of airliners is typically flown by the re ...
capable of operating from strips as short as in length. It was meant to serve small city airports, where
noise abatement
Noise control or noise mitigation is a set of strategies to reduce noise pollution or to reduce the impact of that noise, whether outdoors or indoors.
Overview
The main areas of noise mitigation or abatement are: transportation noise control, ...
requirements were particularly strict, and featured four slow-turning propellers to cut noise. To enhance its STOL performance, the Dash 7 employs many aerodynamic devices, such as double-slotted wing flaps that span about 75% of the trailing edge of the wing and four
spoilers per wing; on landing, the flaps partially retract and the spoilers fully deploy to maximize braking. Financial backing from the Canadian government allowed the launch of the DHC-7 program in the early 1970s, resulting in the maiden flight on 27 March 1975. The type was certificated on 2 May 1977 and entered service with
Rocky Mountain Airways
Rocky Mountain Airways was an American commuter airline headquartered in Hangar No. 6 of Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado. It was sold to Texas Air Corporation/Continental Airlines in 1986 and was operated as a Continental Exp ...
on 3 February 1978. Offered in passenger, freighter, and
combi aircraft
Combi aircraft in commercial aviation are aircraft that can be used to carry either passengers as an airliner, or cargo as a freighter, and may have a partition in the aircraft cabin to allow both uses at the same time in a mixed passenger/fr ...
configurations, production of the Dash 7 ended in 1988 following Boeing's takeover of DHC.
DHC-8 Dash 8
![Airsouthwest dash8 g-wowa arp](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Airsouthwest_dash8_g-wowa_arp.jpg)
De Havilland Canada began development of the Dash 8 in the late 1970s in response to high anticipated demand for regional airliners. Like the Dash 7, the Dash 8 features a high-mounted wing and T-tail, an advanced flight control system, and large full-length trailing-edge flaps, but power is supplied by two
Pratt & Whitney Canada PW120
The Pratt & Whitney Canada PW100 aircraft engine family is a series of turboprops manufactured by Pratt & Whitney Canada. Pratt & Whitney Canada dominates the turboprops market with 89% of the turboprop regional airliner installed base in 2016, ...
turboprops, emphasizing operating economy over STOL performance—a major departure for DHC that proved very successful. The first flight took place on 20 June 1983, Canadian certification was awarded on 28 September 1984, and the first customer delivery was to
NorOntair
NorOntair, stylized as norOntair, was a Canadian regional airline operating in northern Ontario from October 18, 1971 to March 29, 1996. It was as a subsidiary of the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC), a provincial Crown agency ...
on 23 October 1984. When the Dash 8 was introduced, many older regional airliners were becoming obsolescent and expensive to operate but few modern aircraft were immediately available to replace them, leading to substantial Dash 8 sales; to date, over 1,000 have been delivered. The Dash 8 has been offered in several lengths and operating weights, but in 2008, Bombardier announced the discontinuation of the shorter and less powerful variants, leaving the Q400 as the only Dash 8 still in production.
DHC-515 Firefighter
In 2022, de Havilland Canada announced that an improved version of the
Canadair CL-415
The Canadair CL-415 (Super Scooper, later Bombardier 415) and the De Havilland Canada DHC-515 are a series of amphibious aircraft built originally by Canadair and subsequently by Bombardier and Viking Air, and De Havilland Canada. The CL-415 ...
amphibious
aerial firefighting
Aerial may refer to:
Music
* ''Aerial'' (album), by Kate Bush
* ''Aerials'' (song), from the album ''Toxicity'' by System of a Down
Bands
*Aerial (Canadian band)
* Aerial (Scottish band)
* Aerial (Swedish band)
Performance art
* Aerial sil ...
aircraft will be produced at a new assembly line in
Calgary
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...
, Alberta, as the DHC-515 Firefighter.
Aircraft built under licence
![TrackerWingFolding01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/TrackerWingFolding01.JPG)
The de Havilland Canada company produced a large number of aircraft under licence, mostly versions of designs from its original parent company, British
de Havilland Aircraft
The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited () was a British aviation manufacturer established in late 1920 by Geoffrey de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome Edgware on the outskirts of north London. Operations were later moved to Hatfield in H ...
.
de Havilland Fox Moth
Fox Moths were produced in Canada after the Second World War mainly to keep the plant in production, but also to satisfy the increasing need for new bush aircraft. All the Canadian modifications made to the Tiger Moth were also applied to the Fox Moth. de Havilland designed a special stretcher for the Fox Moth, so it could operate as an air ambulance. Of the 53 produced, 39 remained in Canada, most of which were operated in float/ski configuration and gave years of satisfactory service.
The Fox Moth, though efficient, was a bit of an anachronism. For example, a modern, moulded plexiglas sliding cockpit hood was attached to what was essentially a 1932 aircraft. Communication between the passenger cabin in the fuselage and the cockpit to the rear was through a hole in the instrument panel.
de Havilland Mosquito
Before the end of the Second World War, de Havilland Canada built 1,134 Mosquitos, of which 444 were on strength with the RCAF in models Bomber Mk VII through Trainer Mk 29 from 1 June 1943 to 28 September 1951.
de Havilland Canada (Grumman) CS2F Tracker
In 1954, the
Royal Canadian Navy
The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack s ...
decided to replace its fleet of obsolescent
Grumman TBM Avenger
The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air and naval a ...
antisubmarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typic ...
(ASW) aircraft with domestically produced, licence-built versions of the new
Grumman S2F Tracker
The Grumman S-2 Tracker (S2F prior to 1962) was the first purpose-built, single airframe anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft to enter service with the United States Navy. Designed and initially built by Grumman, the Tracker was of conventiona ...
. The contract for the CS2F was worth , at the time, the largest post-Second World War Canadian defence contract. Subassemblies of the aircraft would be produced by various Canadian companies and shipped to de Havilland Canada facilities, where de Havilland would build the forward fuselage and crew compartment, assemble the aircraft, oversee installation of the ASW electronics, and prepare the aircraft for delivery.
The first Canadian-built Tracker flew on 31 May 1956. A total of 99 Trackers was produced for RCN service starting in the same year. A few of these aircraft would serve with the Canadian military until the 1990s.
A few ex-CF Trackers were sold to
Ministry of Natural Resources (Ontario)
The Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry is a government ministry of the Canadian province of Ontario that is responsible for Ontario's provincial parks, forests, fisheries, wildlife, mineral aggregates and the Crown lands ...
(and later resold to Conair) for forest firefighting duties.
Hydrofoil
![HMCS Bras d'Or 03](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/HMCS_Bras_d%27Or_03.jpg)
HMCS ''Bras d'Or'' (FHE 400) was a hydrofoil built from 1960 to 1967 for the Royal Canadian Navy. It served from 1968 to 1971 as a testing platform for antisubmarine warfare technology on an ocean-going hydrofoil. During sea trials in 1969, the vessel exceeded 63 knots (117 km/h; 72 mph), making her possibly the fastest warship in the world. The vessel was constructed at
Marine Industries Limited
Marine Industries Limited (MIL) was a Canadian ship building, hydro-electric and rail car manufacturing company, in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec, with a shipyard located on the Richelieu river about 1 km from the St. Lawrence River. It employed up to ...
of Sorel, Quebec, with de Havilland Canada the prime contractor.
Retired by the navy, the hydrofoil now is displayed at the
Musée maritime du Québec
The ''Musée Maritime du Québec'' (English: Maritime Museum of Québec, also known as the ''Musée Bernier'') is a maritime museum located in the centre of the municipality of L'Islet in the Chaudière-Appalaches region of Quebec, Canada.
The m ...
in
L'Islet-sur-Mer, Quebec.
Privatization
In the 1980s, the government of Canada privatized DHC and in 1986 sold the aircraft company to then Seattle-based Boeing.
[ The government claimed to have guarantees from Boeing not to discontinue any product lines, but shortly thereafter, Boeing discontinued both the successful Twin Otter and the Dash 7. The jigs and specialised equipment for their manufacture were destroyed.
Boeing was in heavy competition with ]Airbus Industrie
Airbus SE (; ; ; ) is a European multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft throughout the world. The company has three divisions: '' ...
for a series of new airliners for Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and ...
, at that time a Canadian crown corporation
A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the governmen ...
. Boeing used the DHC purchase to further strengthen its commitment to shared production contracts. The contract was particularly contentious. When Air Canada announced that Airbus had won the contract in 1988, amid claims of bribery, Boeing immediately put DHC up for sale, placing the company in jeopardy.
Sale to Bombardier
DHC was eventually acquired by Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
-based Bombardier Aerospace
Bombardier Aviation is a division of Bombardier Inc. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada. Its most popular aircraft included the Dash 8 Series 400, CRJ100/200/440, and CRJ700/900/1000 lines of regional airliners, and the newer CS ...
in 1992.[ DHC was eventually incorporated into the Bombardier group of companies and the Dash 8 remained in production, with a particular emphasis being placed on its quiet operation in comparison to other aircraft of a similar size. This product line was expanded to four models, and the largest is labelled ]Q400
The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was later bought by Boeing in 1988, then by Bombardier in 1992; then by ...
.
Purchase by Viking/Longview
On 24 February 2006, Viking Air of Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
purchased the type certificate
A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). It confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production, is in compliance with applica ...
s from Bombardier Aerospace
Bombardier Aviation is a division of Bombardier Inc. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada. Its most popular aircraft included the Dash 8 Series 400, CRJ100/200/440, and CRJ700/900/1000 lines of regional airliners, and the newer CS ...
for all the original de Havilland designs, including:
* DHC-1 Chipmunk
* DHC-2 Beaver
* DHC-3 Otter
* DHC-4 Caribou
* DHC-5 Buffalo
* DHC-6 Twin Otter
* DHC-7 Dash 7
The ownership of the certificates gives Viking the exclusive right to manufacture new aircraft; previously, Viking had purchased in May 2005 the right to manufacture spares and distribute the de Havilland heritage aircraft product line.[
Despite the transfer of its light aircraft certificates to a new owner, de Havilland Canada has left a legacy of innovative and unique aerospace designs and its products are still flying in considerable numbers worldwide, and it has become a productive member of the Bombardier Aerospace stable. The Downsview plant still turns out civilian propeller aircraft, and the facility maintains thousands of employees.
In November 2018, Viking Air parent Longview Aviation Capital Corporation acquired the Bombardier Dash 8 programme and the de Havilland brand from Bombardier, in a deal that was expected to close by the second half of 2019.] In January 2019, Longview announced that it would establish a new company in Ontario, to be called de Havilland Aircraft Co. of Canada, to continue production of the Q400 model and support the Dash 8 range. The deal closed on 3 June 2019; the newly formed company inherited an order book of 51 Q400s. Longview did not intend to merge Viking Air and De Havilland. Some 1200 Bombardier staff transferred to the new De Havilland company, which intended to continue Dash 8-400 production at Downsview until a lease expires in 2023 and hopes to negotiate an extension to that date. Other Dash 8 variants are also under consideration, in particular to target the North American 50-seater market.
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.
In June 2022, after a celebration with 10 DHC types present, from a 1942 Tiger Moth to a 2019 DHC-8-400, the last DHC aircraft left the Downsview site.
In September 2022, De Havilland Canada announced that Wheatland County, Alberta
Wheatland County is a municipal district in south-central Alberta, Canada that is east of Calgary. Located in Census Division No. 5, its municipal office is located east of the Town of Strathmore on Highway 1.
History
On January 1, 1955 ...
, was to be the location of its new production site, to be known as De Havilland Field. The facility will initially manufacture the DHC-515 fire-fighting aircraft; the DHC-6 Twin Otter and the Dash 8-400 will also be assembled at De Havilland Field once production resumes.
Aircraft
Spacecraft
*Alouette 1
''Alouette 1'' is a deactivated Canadian satellite that studied the ionosphere. Launched in 1962, it was Canada's first satellite, and the first satellite constructed by a country other than the Soviet Union or the United States. Canada was th ...
See also
* Bombardier Aerospace
Bombardier Aviation is a division of Bombardier Inc. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada. Its most popular aircraft included the Dash 8 Series 400, CRJ100/200/440, and CRJ700/900/1000 lines of regional airliners, and the newer CS ...
* Canadair
Canadair Ltd. was a civil and military aircraft manufacturer in Canada. In 1986, its assets were acquired by Bombardier Aerospace, the aviation division of Canadian transport conglomerate Bombardier Inc.
Canadair's origins lie in the establishm ...
* Canadian Air and Space Museum
The Canadian Air and Space Conservancy (formerly the Toronto Aerospace Museum and the Canadian Air and Space Museum) was an aviation museum that was located in Toronto, Ontario, featuring artifacts, exhibits and stories illustrating a century of ...
* de Havilland
The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited () was a British aviation manufacturer established in late 1920 by Geoffrey de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome Edgware on the outskirts of north London. Operations were later moved to Hatfield in H ...
* Learjet
* List of civil aircraft
List of civil aircraft is a list of articles on civilian aircraft with descriptions, which excludes aircraft operated by military organizations in civil markings, warbirds, warbirds used for racing, replica warbirds and research aircraft.
A ABC ...
* List of STOL aircraft
This is a list of aircraft which are classified as having Short Takeoff and Landing, or STOL, characteristics.
The STOL class excludes vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) types, rotorcraft, aerostats and most light aircraft.
__TOC__
List of a ...
* Shorts
Shorts are a garment worn over the human pelvis, pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" b ...
* Viking Air
Viking Air Ltd. is a manufacturer of aircraft, as well as aircraft parts and systems, based at Victoria International Airport in North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The company produces new versions of the DHC-6 Twin Otter, upgraded versi ...
References
;Notes
;Citations
;Bibliography
* Hotson, Fred W. ''The de Havilland Canada Story.'' Toronto: CANAV Books, 1983. .
* Milberry, Larry. ''Aviation In Canada''. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Ltd., 1979. .
* Molson, Ken M. and Harold A. Taylor. ''Canadian Aircraft Since 1909''. Stittsville, Ontario: Canada's Wings, Inc., 1982. .
External links
Official website
The Canadian Encyclopedia, de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited
BAE Systems, Heritage - De Havilland Canada
{{Aircraft manufactured in Canada
Aviation history of Canada
Bombardier Aerospace
Former defence companies of Canada
World War II military equipment of Canada
Canadian brands
Thomson family