Viking Aviation, a subsidiary of Longview Aviation Capital (LAC), along with companies currently operating as Longview Aviation, Pacific Sky Training and De Havilland Canada, is to rebrand as De Havilland Aircraft of Canada.

Through its subsidiaries, LAC holds the Type Certificates for the entire product line of the original De Havilland aircraft company including the DHC-1 through DHC-8, as well as the Canadair amphibious CL-215, CL-215T, and CL-415 aerial firefighting aircraft, and the Shorts Skyvan, 360, 330 and Sherpa family of aircraft. Longview’s subsidiaries operate manufacturing and aircraft service support in locations across Canada. 

"Our acquisition of the De Havilland Dash-8 programme from Bombardier in 2019 united the entire De Havilland product line for the first time in decades, and we are proud to consolidate our aviation assets under the iconic De Havilland banner," says LAC owner Sherry Brydson. "The De Havilland name is globally renowned and carries a reputation for being designed for rugged use, historic innovation and an iconic safety performance record due to high quality Canadian manufacturing, and we are we excited about the opportunities ahead of us as a single brand.”

These companies combined support over 1,000 aerospace jobs across Canada. Over the coming weeks, the people and operations of Viking Air, Pacific Sky Training and the Longview-named businesses will be integrated under the De Havilland Aircraft of Canada brand in order to bring better service and products to customers through a one-window approach. And in addition to creating a new organisational structure, Brian Chafe is named chief executive officer of the company.

"Brian's deep experience as a customer-focused leader of a diversified and globally prominent Canadian aerospace company will be invaluable as we continue to build a strong De Havilland Canada for the future,” says Brydson.

Chafe is an experienced executive in the Canadian aerospace industry, most recently as chief executive officer of the PAL Group, a diversified global aerospace company active across a range of sectors including aircraft engineering, maintenance and modification, in-service support, special missions, and search and rescue. Under his leadership, PAL successfully grew into a number of new product and geographic markets, developed an in-house R&D capacity, and leads the maritime surveillance market.

"It is a privilege to lead De Havilland Aircraft of Canada into its second century," says Chafe. "Its products are unrivalled in the regional and utility turboprop segment of the industry, and that is thanks to its talented team of aviation professionals. This foundation is why I am so bullish on our ability to lead the growth of the aerospace sector in Canada as the world economy rebounds from the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic."