Skyline was a
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
charter airline which operated from 1971 to 1978. It had a fleet of
Vickers Viscount
The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner.
The Vi ...
aircraft, operating between one and three at any given time and a total of five aircraft. Based in
Malmö
Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal pop ...
, it initially flew out of
Malmö Bulltofta Airport. The airport closed in 1972 and Skyline moved to
Malmö Sturup Airport.
From 1975 to 1977 the company experienced a major increase to traffic flying three aircraft for
Linjeflyg
Linjeflyg was a Swedish domestic airline, formed in 1957 as a domestic subsidiary by Scandinavian Airlines System and Airtaco as well as by newspaper publishers Dagens Nyheter AB and Stockholms-Tidningen AB.
History
Airtaco (founded in August ...
for its scheduled, domestic network. Flying out of
Stockholm Bromma Airport
Bromma Stockholm Airport (formerly Stockholm-Bromma Flygplats) is a Swedish domestic and minor international airport in Stockholm. It is located west-northwest of downtown Stockholm and is the closest to the city compared to the other commercial ...
, it served seven towns in southern Sweden. On 15 January 1977 one its aircraft flying
Linjeflyg Flight 618
Linjeflyg Flight 618 was a crash of a Vickers 838 Viscount during approach to Stockholm Bromma Airport at 09:05 on 15 January 1977. All twenty-two people on board the aircraft perished when it hit ground at Kälvesta in Stockholm, Sweden. The d ...
crashed at
Kälvesta during approach to Bromma, killing all 22 people on board. The Linjeflyg contract expired that year and the company ceased operations in 1978.
History
Skyline was established in 1971
with a base at
Malmö Bulltofta Airport.
It originally operated a Vickers 784 Viscount with a capacity for 65 passengers. It relied on various charter services, such as student clubs and sports clubs for revenue.
Skyline moved from Bulltofta to the Malmö Sturup Airport on 2 December 1972, when the former was closed and replaced by the latter.
![Skyline Vickers Viscount Soderstrom](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Skyline_Vickers_Viscount_Soderstrom.jpg)
Because of delays of the delivery of their new
Fokker F28 Fellowship
The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a twin-engined, short-range jet airliner designed and built by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.
Following the Fokker F27 Friendship, an early and commercially successful turboprop-powered regional airliner, Fokk ...
aircraft, Linjefly started in 1975 to
wet lease
Aircraft leases are leases used by airlines and other aircraft operators. Airlines lease aircraft from other airlines or leasing companies for two main reasons: to operate aircraft without the financial burden of buying them, and to provide tempora ...
flights from Skyline. Initially these consisted of the routes
Stockholm–
Kalmar
Kalmar (, , ) is a city in the southeast of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 36,392 inhabitants in 2010 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of ...
–
Ronneby, Stockholm–Visby, Stockholm–Visby–Kalmar–Ronneby–Malmö, Stockholm–
Hultsfred
Hultsfred () is a locality and the seat of Hultsfred Municipality, Kalmar County, Sweden with 5,143 inhabitants in 2010. It is best known for the Hultsfred Festival
The Hultsfred Festival ( sv, Hultsfredsfestivalen) was an annual music festiva ...
–
Växjö
Växjö ( ) is a city and the seat of Växjö Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden. It had 70,489 inhabitants (2019) out of a municipal population of 95,995 (2021). It is the administrative, cultural, and industrial centre of Kronoberg County ...
–
Kristianstad
Kristianstad (, ; older spelling from Danish ''Christianstad'') is a city and the seat of Kristianstad Municipality, Scania County, Sweden with 40,145 inhabitants in 2016. During the last 15 years, it has gone from a garrison town to a devel ...
–Malmö.To deal with the traffic, Skyline leased two additional Viscounts, the larger 814D model with capacity for 75 passengers. These had originally been delivered to
Lufthansa. Skyline operated with their own crew and aircraft, but with Linjeflyg's
flight codes and chartered for an hourly fee. During the late 1970s Linjeflyg accounted for the vast majority of Skyline's revenue, although it continued to supplement with conventional charter flights.
The airline replaced its first aircraft with a similar, larger Vickers 838 Viscount. That year Skyline started two additional routes for Linjeflyg: Stockholm–
Jönköping
Jönköping (, ) is a city in southern Sweden with 112,766 inhabitants (2022). Jönköping is situated on the southern shore of Sweden's second largest lake, Vättern, in the province of Småland.
The city is the seat of Jönköping Municipa ...
and Stockholm–
Karlstad. However, the aircraft would be written off in Flight 618 on 15 January 1977 and was therefore replaced with a leased Viscont 814D. This arrangement lasted for some months, before Skyline's contract with Linjeflyg was terminated due to the delivery of the F28s.
Skyline ceased operations in 1978.
Destinations
The following is a list of the airports which Skyline served in scheduled services.
Accidents and incidents
Skyline's only accident
was Linjeflyg Flight 618, which took place during approach to
Stockholm Bromma Airport
Bromma Stockholm Airport (formerly Stockholm-Bromma Flygplats) is a Swedish domestic and minor international airport in Stockholm. It is located west-northwest of downtown Stockholm and is the closest to the city compared to the other commercial ...
at 09:05 on 15 January 1977. The flight was operated from Malmö to Stockholm via Kristianstand, Växjö and Jönköping. During approach to Stockholm Bromma Airport the horizontal stabilizer experienced
atmospheric icing
Atmospheric icing occurs in the atmosphere when water droplets suspended in air freeze on objects they come in contact with. It is not the same as freezing rain, which is caused directly by precipitation. Icing conditions can be particularly dang ...
. Low power on two of the engines had caused reduced function of the
ice protection system
In aeronautics, ice protection systems keep atmospheric moisture from accumulating on aircraft surfaces, such as wings, propellers, rotor blades, engine intakes, and environmental control intakes. Ice buildup can change the shape of airfoils ...
, causing a buildup of ice. During approach the pilots suddenly lost pitch control and the aircraft crashed in the neighborhood of
Kälvesta, Stockholm. There were nineteen passengers and a crew of three on board; all were killed in the accident.
References
{{Authority control
Defunct airlines of Sweden
Companies based in Malmö
Swedish companies established in 1971
1978 disestablishments in Sweden
Airlines established in 1971
Airlines disestablished in 1978