De Havilland Canada

De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. was founded in 1928 as part of the expanding British De Havilland Aircraft Company. The Canadian factory produced several British designed DH's (including several DH.60's, DH.82's and DH.98's) before starting their own line of locally-designed aircraft after the Second World War.

From 1946 to date, only 8 different aircraft designs have emerged, all of them notable for longevity in production. All types are described below, some being illustrated as well.

The DHC.1 Chipmunk was designed as a military trainer. Of all-metal construction, the prototype first took to the air on May 22nd, 1946. It was soon adopted by the Royal Canadian Air Force and the RAF, several other air arms following later on. With the Chipmunk's military career over, several of the species are still around in civil hands.

Two basic variations on the Chipmunk exist : those as illustrated below and the ones with the RCAF's one-piece sliding hood. However, some Chips have been modified for specific tasks such as crop-spraying. Even more exotic modifications involved the aerobatic machines flown by Skip Volk and Art Scholl. These aircraft were single seaters with retractable gear, more powerful engines and enlarged vertical surfaces.

A DHC.1 Chipmunk and an Emeraude during a low level formation flypast, typical of events such as the Belgian Veteran Aircraft Fly-in at Schaffen/Diest where this picture was taken.

On August 16, 1947, the DHC.2 Beaver made its first flight. This sturdy utility aircraft became famous for its flying abilities in the harsh Canadian bush environment. According to needs, the Beaver easily converted from wheel undercarriage to floats or skis. It was used by several air arms including the USAF and the RAF, and is still in use nowadays in a variety of mostly civil roles.

Similar in appearance to the Beaver but much larger, the DHC.3 Otter was designed as a small transport aircraft, capable of holding either 14 passengers or 1 ton of freight. Due to its ruggedness and versatility (it too could either be fitted with wheel, ski or float undercarriage) it was adopted by several air arms as well as some airlines. Some remain in use today.

The first twin-engined design by De Havilland Canada was the DHC.4 Caribou. It was a high wing military transport with a rear loading ramp. Most of the production run entered service with the RCAF and USAF, some aircraft equally going to the air arms of Australia, Colombia, Spain and Tanzania. Some aircraft are still in use as civil freighters. Some attempts have been made to re-engine the Caribou with turboprops, but success was rather limited.

To improve the short take off capablities of the DHC.4 it became clear that more powerful engines were needed. Instead of bolting on larger piston engines onto the Caribou airframe, DHC redesigned the aircraft completely and fitted turboprop engines. Thus, the DHC.5 Buffalo was born. Although similar to its predecessor, it took advantage of the latest construction techniques. Sales were mostly to military users including the RCAF and the USAF. An attempt to market a civil version was unsuccessful.

It may not be immediately apparent, but the DHC.6 Twin Otter was actually a twin-engined outgrowth of the DHC.3 Otter. Initial twin-engined test flights were indeed performed with a modified DHC.3. As with other DHC products, this aircraft is known for its ruggedness and accidented terrain capability. It still is in use in several air arms and airlines the world over.

Up to this date, the DHC.7 is the only 4-engined aircraft developed by the Canadian company. It was mainly intended for hot and high operations, the 4 engines providing additional safety. It never really became popular in military service, but some airlines use it to good effect.

Latest DHC product is the DHC.8, a twin engined high wing short-haul airliner. Of high wing construction, it has an excellent safety record and can be found the world over.