Sunday, June 22, 2008
Steve's "Otter Of The Week"! .....by Karl E. Hayes
This summer I am flying and living in a different geographic area than I normally have been for the past number of years. One of the "bonuses" of a change of address is getting to meet "the neighbours". I have met a number of the neighbours, but there is one neighbour I haven't "crossed paths" with yet, although I hope to before the season is done. "Hey", check out her history..........
All information is from Karl Hayes' "masterful" CD entitled:
De Havilland Canada
DHC-3 OTTER
A HISTORY
CONTACT KARL, CD PRICING and ORDERING INFO - De Havilland DHC-3 OTTER - A HISTORY by Karl E. Hayes
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Otter 365
Otter 365 was delivered to the RCAF on 16th June 1960 with serial 9406. It was allocated to 438 Squadron at St.Hubert, Montreal where it served until selected for duty with 117 Air Transport Unit, an RCAF unit formed to support a United Nations mission supervising a cease-fire between India and Pakistan. The Otter flew to Trenton on 23rd September '65, taking up temporary residence with 102 Communications Unit, and was then loaded on board an RCAF Hercules and flown to Lahore in Pakistan, where it arrived on 6th October 1965. Two other Otters served with 117 ATU, these being 9422 (404) and 9423 (405). The activities of 117 ATU are described in the Canadian military section. The three Otters were flown back to Canada in April 1966, again on board RCAF Hercules.
After re-assembly by No.6 Repair Depot, 9406 was assigned on 18th November 1966 to No.4 Operational Training Unit at Trenton. This unit was re-designated 424 Transport & Rescue Squadron in November 1968, remaining based at Trenton. The Otter was noted on detachment at Goose Bay during June 1969. 9406 continued to serve with 424 Squadron until transferred to 401 Squadron at St.Hubert on 22nd June 1970. On 28th June '72 it went into storage at the Mountain View Depot until 6th August 1974 when it was assigned to 402 Squadron at Winnipeg. On 22nd December '75 it was transferred back to St.Hubert and re-joined 401 Squadron. It continued to serve with 401 Squadron until 9th December 1981 when it was flown to the Mountain View Depot and put up for disposal by the Crown Assets Disposal Corporation.
9406 was sold in an auction in February 1982, with a total airframe time at that stage of 6,576 hours. The buyer was Nahanni Air Services Ltd of Norman Wells, Northwest Territories, to whom the Otter was registered in February 1983 as C-GUTL. Nahanni Air Services had also purchased two other ex-Canadian military Otters, 9421 (402) which became C-GUTQ and 9423 (405) which became C-GUTW. Otter C-GUTL went on lease to LSD Aviation Ltd of Fort Frances, Ontario for the summer of 1983. A company in Colombia then agreed to purchase all three of these Otters from Nahanni Air Services. The proposed purchaser had the exotic name of Aerolineas de la Orinoquia & Amazonia Limitada and early in 1984 paid a deposit for the Otters, and obtained Colombian registrations for the three aircraft. C-GUTL (365) was to become HK-3048X, C-GUTQ (402) was to become HK-3049X and C-GUTW (405) was to become HK-3050X.
The three Otters were made ready for delivery, but the final payment was never made and nothing more was heard from the would-be purchaser. After this sale had fallen through, C-GUTL was sold to Fort Frances Sportsmen Airways Ltd, to whom it was registered in April 1984, based at Fort Frances, Ontario. It was converted to Vazar turbine Otter and carries Northern Wilderness Outfitters Ltd titles, a company associated with Fort Frances Sportsmen Airways Ltd. It is used during the summer months to fly fishermen and tourists to remote parts of Ontario, and was still in service during the summer of 2004, twenty years after first delivered to Fort Frances.
*** LATEST UPDATE!***
Otter 365
January 1st, 2008. C-GUTL. Fort Frances Sportsmen Airways Ltd., Fort Frances, Ontario. Vazar.
- by Karl E. Hayes
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Well, I was in "Fort Frankie" last week, but I never found "UTL". Maybe next time........
(Hey, I wonder what the Colombian company wanted 3 Otters for? You could load a lot of "Latin Lettuce" in an Otter.....)
-photo by Rich Hulina
-photo by Ruud Leeuw
CONTACT KARL, CD PRICING and ORDERING INFO - De Havilland DHC-3 OTTER - A HISTORY by Karl E. Hayes
All information is from Karl Hayes' "masterful" CD entitled:
De Havilland Canada
DHC-3 OTTER
A HISTORY
CONTACT KARL, CD PRICING and ORDERING INFO - De Havilland DHC-3 OTTER - A HISTORY by Karl E. Hayes
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Otter 365
Otter 365 was delivered to the RCAF on 16th June 1960 with serial 9406. It was allocated to 438 Squadron at St.Hubert, Montreal where it served until selected for duty with 117 Air Transport Unit, an RCAF unit formed to support a United Nations mission supervising a cease-fire between India and Pakistan. The Otter flew to Trenton on 23rd September '65, taking up temporary residence with 102 Communications Unit, and was then loaded on board an RCAF Hercules and flown to Lahore in Pakistan, where it arrived on 6th October 1965. Two other Otters served with 117 ATU, these being 9422 (404) and 9423 (405). The activities of 117 ATU are described in the Canadian military section. The three Otters were flown back to Canada in April 1966, again on board RCAF Hercules.
After re-assembly by No.6 Repair Depot, 9406 was assigned on 18th November 1966 to No.4 Operational Training Unit at Trenton. This unit was re-designated 424 Transport & Rescue Squadron in November 1968, remaining based at Trenton. The Otter was noted on detachment at Goose Bay during June 1969. 9406 continued to serve with 424 Squadron until transferred to 401 Squadron at St.Hubert on 22nd June 1970. On 28th June '72 it went into storage at the Mountain View Depot until 6th August 1974 when it was assigned to 402 Squadron at Winnipeg. On 22nd December '75 it was transferred back to St.Hubert and re-joined 401 Squadron. It continued to serve with 401 Squadron until 9th December 1981 when it was flown to the Mountain View Depot and put up for disposal by the Crown Assets Disposal Corporation.
9406 was sold in an auction in February 1982, with a total airframe time at that stage of 6,576 hours. The buyer was Nahanni Air Services Ltd of Norman Wells, Northwest Territories, to whom the Otter was registered in February 1983 as C-GUTL. Nahanni Air Services had also purchased two other ex-Canadian military Otters, 9421 (402) which became C-GUTQ and 9423 (405) which became C-GUTW. Otter C-GUTL went on lease to LSD Aviation Ltd of Fort Frances, Ontario for the summer of 1983. A company in Colombia then agreed to purchase all three of these Otters from Nahanni Air Services. The proposed purchaser had the exotic name of Aerolineas de la Orinoquia & Amazonia Limitada and early in 1984 paid a deposit for the Otters, and obtained Colombian registrations for the three aircraft. C-GUTL (365) was to become HK-3048X, C-GUTQ (402) was to become HK-3049X and C-GUTW (405) was to become HK-3050X.
The three Otters were made ready for delivery, but the final payment was never made and nothing more was heard from the would-be purchaser. After this sale had fallen through, C-GUTL was sold to Fort Frances Sportsmen Airways Ltd, to whom it was registered in April 1984, based at Fort Frances, Ontario. It was converted to Vazar turbine Otter and carries Northern Wilderness Outfitters Ltd titles, a company associated with Fort Frances Sportsmen Airways Ltd. It is used during the summer months to fly fishermen and tourists to remote parts of Ontario, and was still in service during the summer of 2004, twenty years after first delivered to Fort Frances.
*** LATEST UPDATE!***
Otter 365
January 1st, 2008. C-GUTL. Fort Frances Sportsmen Airways Ltd., Fort Frances, Ontario. Vazar.
- by Karl E. Hayes
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, I was in "Fort Frankie" last week, but I never found "UTL". Maybe next time........
(Hey, I wonder what the Colombian company wanted 3 Otters for? You could load a lot of "Latin Lettuce" in an Otter.....)
CONTACT KARL, CD PRICING and ORDERING INFO - De Havilland DHC-3 OTTER - A HISTORY by Karl E. Hayes
