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Greg Hyde
25th May 2016, 01:25 PM
A Dying Breed

Recently, DeHavilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter numbers have been reduced to one (VH-ZKF) aircraft operating in Australia with Seair Pacific on the Gold Coast. The other two on the Australian register (VH-BVS & VH-XFM) are both operating overseas.

Of the fifty-five Twin Otters that have appeared on the Australian Register from 1966 to 2016, registrations peaked in 1997 with twenty-five of the type.

Operated by TAA and Ansett via MMA and Aeropelican the Twin Otter has been well known for Australian & PNG bush operations.

The first DHC-6 in Australia was delivered to TAA on July 7, 1966 was VH-TGR which was the sixth aircraft off the production line. Unfortunately VH-TGR was lost when it crashed at Kainatu PNG on April 28, 1970

Grahame Hutchison
25th May 2016, 03:53 PM
May 20 1965 was the first flight of the DHC-6 Twin Otter, 51 years ago.

In the 1980s, AeroPelican operated a high frequency service between Sydney Airport and Belmont Airport (Pelican) south of Newcastle. From memory it
was something like 12 return services per day. If you spent the morning at Sydney Airport photographing, the Aeropelican would just come and go all
morning long.

VH-KZP about to touchdown on Runway 25 - 18/11/1982
http://www.16right.com/Aircraft-Images/displayimage.php?image=VH-KZP NFTN-19821118-001.jpg

VH-KZN on short final for Runway 25 at Sydney - 21/03/2003
http://www.16right.com/Aircraft-Images/displayimage.php?image=VH-KZN D100-2003-03-21_201.jpg

VH-KZN taxiing on Chralie for a Runway 16L departure - 16/04/2004
http://www.16right.com/Aircraft-Images/displayimage.php?image=VH-KZN D100-2004-04-16_082.jpg

MarkR
25th May 2016, 04:38 PM
Given they are still in production, I would hardly call them dying, unlike the SF340, Metros and Jetstreams. Single pilot IFR and the advent of the caravan was what probably caused their decline in popularity.

Greg Hyde
25th May 2016, 05:08 PM
Nice shots, Grahame.

I was a regular commuter on Aeropelican for many years.

Rob R
25th May 2016, 08:19 PM
Same can be said for the Embraer 110 Bandit. Like the Twin Otter it was the main stay of the regional airlines throughout the 80,90's and early 2000's. It was operated by Masling's (first Australian operator), Skywest, Eastern, Sunstate, FlightWest, Lloyds, Transtate, Hazelton, AusAir, Sunshine Express and numerous charter operators.

Greg Hyde
26th May 2016, 12:21 PM
Same can be said for the Embraer 110 Bandit. Like the Twin Otter it was the main stay of the regional airlines throughout the 80,90's and early 2000's. It was operated by Masling's (first Australian operator), Skywest, Eastern, Sunstate, FlightWest, Lloyds, Transtate, Hazelton, AusAir, Sunshine Express and numerous charter operators.

Last time I check there were 7 Bandys still on the register with several spare ships. Not as dead yet.