De Havilland Canada Dash 8

 

"Dash 8" is also a series of diesel locomotives built by GE; see List of GE locomotives

"Dash 8"
A 78-seat Q400 operated by British European.
Type	Turboprop Airliner
Manufacturer	Bombardier Aerospace
Designed by	de Havilland Canada
Maiden flight	20 June 1983
Introduced	1984 with NorOntair
Primary users	Air Canada Jazz (67) Piedmont Airlines (60) Horizon Air (49) QantasLink (41)
Produced	1983-present
Number built	714+
Developed from	de Havilland Canada Dash 7

The de Havilland Canada DHC-8, popularly known as the Dash 8, is a series of twin-engined, medium range, turboprop airliners introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. They are now produced by Bombardier Aerospace, which purchased DHC from Boeing in 1992. Since 1996, the aircraft have been known as the Q Series, for "quiet" due to installation of the Active Noise and Vibration Suppression (ANVS) system designed to reduce cabin noise and vibration levels to less than those of jet airliners. Over 700 Dash 8s of all models have been built.

Design and development

In the 1970s, de Havilland Canada had invested heavily in their Dash 7 project, creating what was essentially a larger four-engine version of their Twin Otter concentrating on excellent STOL and short-field performance, their traditional area of expertise. Using four medium-power engines with large four-bladed propellers resulted in very low noise levels which, combined with its excellent STOL characteristics, made the Dash 7 suitable for operating from small in-city airports, a market DHC felt would be compelling. However, only a handful of air carriers employed the Dash 7 as most regional airlines were more interested in operational costs than short-field performance.

In 1980, de Havilland responded by dropping the short-field performance requirement and adapting the basic Dash 7 layout to use only two, more powerful, engines. Their favoured engine supplier, Pratt & Whitney Canada, developed the new PW100 series engines for the role, more than doubling the power from their PT6. Originally designated the PT7A-2R engine, it later became the PW120. When the Dash 8 rolled out on 19 April 1983, more the 3800 hours of testing had been accumulated over two years on five PW100 series test engines. Certification of the PW120 followed in late 1983. ^[1]

Distinguishing features of the Dash 8 design are the large T-tail intended to keep the tail free of propwash during takeoff, a very high aspect ratio wing, the elongated engine nacelles also holding the rearward-folding landing gear and the pointed nose profile. First flight was on 20 June 1983, and the airliner entered service in 1984 with NorOntair. Piedmont Airlines, formerly Henson Airlines, was the first US customer for the Dash 8 in 1984.

The Dash 8 design had better cruise performance than the Dash 7, was less expensive to operate, and much less expensive to maintain due largely to having only two engines. The Dash 8 had the lowest cost per passenger mile of any feederliner of the era. It was a little noisier than the extremely quiet Dash 7, and could not match the superb STOL performance of its earlier DHC forebears, although still able to operate from small airports with 3,000 ft (1,000 m) runways, as against 2,200 ft required by a fully loaded Dash 7.

Operational history

The Dash 8 was introduced at a particularly advantageous time; most airlines were in the process of adding new aircraft to their fleet as the airline industry expanded greatly in the 1980s. The older generation of feederliners from the 1950s and '60s was nearing retirement, leading to high sales figures. de Havilland Canada was unable to meet the demand with sufficient production.

In 1988, Boeing bought the company in a bid to improve production at DHC's Downsview Airport plants, as well as better position themselves to compete for a new Air Canada order for large intercontinental airliners. Air Canada was a Crown corporation at the time, and both Boeing and Airbus were competing heavily via political channels for the contract. It was eventually won by Airbus, who received an order for 34 A330 and A340 aircraft in a highly controversial move. The allegations of bribery are today known as the Airbus affair. Following their failure in the competition, Boeing immediately put de Havilland Canada up for sale. The company was eventually purchased by Bombardier in 1992.

The market demand for short-haul airliners was so great that Aerospatiale of France paired with Italy's Alenia to form ATR. Their once separate efforts combined to compete directly with the Dash 8. The resulting ATR 42 was even less expensive than the Dash 8, but de Havilland Canada responded with newer models to close the gap. Other companies competed with smaller or more tailored designs, like the Saab 340 and Embraer Brasilia, but these were not introduced until the market had already begun to saturate.

Regional jet competition

The introduction of the regional jet altered the sales picture. Although rather more expensive than turboprops they can operate passenger services on routes not suitable for turboprops. Turboprop aircraft have lower fuel consumption and can operate from shorter runways than regional jets, but have higher engine maintenance costs, shorter range and lower cruising speeds.^[2]

The market for new aircraft to replace existing turboprops once again grew in the mid-1990s, and de Havilland responded with the introduction of the improved "Series 400" design. By then Bombardier had purchased the company and dropped the de Havilland Canada name; the aircraft became the Bombardier Q400.

When world oil prices drove up short-haul airfares in 2006, an increasing number of airlines that had bought regional jets began to reassess turboprop regional airliners, which use about 30% less fuel than regional jets. Although the market does not appear to be as robust as in the 1980s when the first Dash 8s were introduced, 2007 saw increased sales of the only two 40+ seat regional propjets remaining in western production, Bombardier's Q400 and its competitor, the ATR series of 50-70 seat turboprops. The Q400 has a cruising speed close to that of most regional jets, and its mature engines and systems require less frequent maintenance, reducing its disadvantage. ^[3]

The aircraft breaks even with about 1/3rd of its seats filled (or 1/4 with more closely spaced seats), making it particularly attractive on routes with varying passenger numbers where many seats will be empty on some flights. For example, Island Air in Hawaii calculated that the use of a 50-seat Regional Jet would break even at 45 passenger seats compared to the Q400's 35-36 seats (around 55% breakeven load factor). Most short-haul routes are less than 350 miles (500 km), so the time spent taxiing, takeoff and landing virtually eliminate a competing jet's speed advantage. As the Q400's 425 mph (685 km/h) cruise speed approaches jet speeds, short-haul airlines can usually replace a regional jet with a Q400 without changing their gate-to-gate schedules.^[4]

All Dash 8s delivered from the second quarter of 1996 (including all Series 400s) include an active Noise and Vibration Suppression (NVS) system designed to reduce cabin noise and vibration levels to nearly those of jet airliners. To emphasize their quietness, Bombardier has renamed the Dash 8 models as the Q Series turboprops (Q100, Q200, Q300 and Q400).

Bombardier has singled out the Q400 for more aggressive marketing, launching a website centered around the aircraft.^[5]

Landing Gear Issues

On 12 September 2007, Bombardier recommended all Q400s with over 10,000 landings to be grounded for inspection of their landing gear after two non-fatal accidents within 3 days involving the landing gear of a Q400 series aircraft. Both aircraft operated by Scandinavian Airlines, who were an early operator of the type.^[6] This affects about 60 aircraft in total, out of a total of 140 Q400s in service. Totally five Q400s have had landing gear failures while landing during 2007: one in Denmark, one in Germany, one in Japan, one in Lithuania and one in South Korea. See: Notable incidents and accidents (below).

Variants

There are a number of variants of the Dash 8:

• Series 100: Original 37–40 passenger version that entered service in 1984.
• Dash 8M-100 : Two aircraft for Transport Canada.
• Series 200: Series 100 airframe with more powerful Pratt & Whitney Canada PW123 engines for improved performance also capable of carrying 37 to 39 passengers.
• Series 300: Stretched 3.4 m (11 ft) over the Series 100/200, a 50–56 passenger version that entered service in 1989.
• Series 300A : Version of the Series 300 with increased payload.
• Series 400: Stretched and improved 70–78 passenger version that entered service in 2000. Its 370 kt (585 km/h) cruise speed is 75 kt (140 km/h) higher than its predecessors. Powered by PW150A engines rated at 5,071 shp (3.7 MW) at maximum power. Maximum operating altitude is 25,000 ft (7,600 m) for the standard version, although a version with drop-down oxygen masks is offered, which increases maximum altitude to 27,000 ft (8,200 m).
• CC-142 : Military transport version for the Canadian Forces in Europe.
• CT-142 : Military navigation training version for the Canadian Forces.
• E-9A : A USAF range control aircraft that operates out of Tyndall AFB, Florida to ensure that the military ranges in the Gulf of Mexico are clear of civilian boats and aircraft during live-fire tests and other hazardous military activities. Two airframes are assigned to the base for the support of training missions.
• Q400-MR : 400 series adapted to the water bombing role for the french Sécurité Civile.

Operators

Current operators

Series 100

As of August 2006, a total of 227 Dash 8 Series 100 aircraft remain in airline service, with 1 further firm order. Major operators include: Air Canada Jazz (42), Air Creebec (5), Air Iceland (2), Air Inuit (8), Air Labrador (3), Arctic Sunwest (2), Asia Pacific Airlines (PNG) (2), AIRES (4), Hawkair (3), Era Aviation (4), Freedom Airlines (12), Island Air (9), Leeward Islands Air Transport (5), North Cariboo Air (4), Olympic Airlines (4), Perimeter Aviation (3), Piedmont Airlines (46), Provincial Airlines, Regional One (4), Widerøe (17), Airlines PNG (7), QantasLink (9), GMG Airlines (2). Ryūkyū Air Commuter, National Jet Systems (1), Cirrus Airlines (4), Royal Bengal Airlines (2), United Airlines (1). Some 22 other airlines operate smaller numbers of Dash 8 Series 100.^[7]

Series 200

In August 2006 a total of 72 Dash 8 Series 200 aircraft remain in airline service, with 2 further firm orders. Major operators include: Air Niugini (4), QantasLink (3), Surveillance Australia, Horizon Air (23), Mesa Airlines (28) South African Express (7),Island Aviation Services (2) and CommutAir as Continental Connection (4). Some 14 other airlines operate smaller numbers of Dash 8 Series 200.^[7]

Series 300

In August 2006 , a total of 214 Dash 8 Series 300 aircraft remain in airline service, with 13 further firm orders. Major operators include: Bahamasair (8) (Launch Customer), Air Canada Jazz (25), AIRES (4), Air New Zealand (18) with 5 on order, Air Nostrum (9), Air Philippines (3), Air Southwest (5), Air Nippon Network (5), Augsburg Airways (6), Surveillance Australia (2), Austrian Arrows (12), Cirrus Airlines (4), Caribbean Star Airlines (9), Denim Air (11), Flybe (6), InterSky (6), Leeward Islands Air Transport (9), Piedmont Airlines (11), QantasLink (8), Sunstate Airlines (8), Uni Air (10), Aero Contractors (5), Voyageur Airways (5), Bahamas Air (8), South African Express (7), Petroleum Air Services (4), Air Nelson (21) Caribbean Airlines (5) and Widerøe (9), GMG Airlines (1), Philippine Airlines (2), Air Philippines (1), Arik Air (3) . Some 11 other airlines operate smaller numbers of Dash 8 Series 300.^[7] Flybaboo (2)

Series 400

As of April 2007 a total of 140 Q400 aircraft are in airline service, with 215 firm orders. Major operators include: Air Nippon Network (9), Air Tahoma (6), Augsburg Airways (5), Austrian Arrows (10), Croatia Airlines (4 on order), Flybe (33), Horizon Air (33), Japan Air Commuter (8), Porter Airlines (4), Scandinavian Airlines System (24), Sunstate Airlines (QantasLink) (7), Jeju Air (5), Tassili Airlines (2, and 6 in order), Widerøe (4), Luxair (3), Royal Jordanian (2) ,and Colgan Air (15). Some 17 other airlines operate smaller numbers of Dash 8 Series 400.^[7]

Other

In February 2006, Porter Airlines announced that they had purchased ten 70-seater turboprops to service the Toronto Island Airport.^{[citation needed]}

In September 2006, Frontier Airlines announced an order for ten Q400s, taking delivery of the first plane in May 2007. Frontier expects the total fleet to be in service by December 2007. Additionally, Frontier holds purchase options for 10 additional aircraft.^{[citation needed]}

In February 2007, Pinnacle Airlines Corporation announced an order for 15 Q400s on behalf of its recently acquired subsidiary, Colgan Air. The aircraft will be operated in a "codeshare" agreement with Continental Airlines, under the Continental Connection banner out of their Newark, New Jersey hub.^{[citation needed]}

In April 2007, Horizon Air announced a firm order for 15 Q400s, with an option for 20 additional aircraft.

In June 2007, Croatia Airlines announced an order for 4 Q400s to replace the ATR-42s in the fleet, boosting its regional network. With an option for an additional 2 aircraft, these will be delivered in 2008/9.

Coast guard and military operators

 Aruba

• Coast Guard of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba

 Australia

• Australian Coastwatch

 Canada

• Canadian Forces

 Kenya

• Kenya Air Force

 Mexico

• Mexican Navy

 Netherlands Antilles

• Coast Guard of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba

 Sweden

• The Swedish Coast Guard will operate three Dash-8 300 maritime surveillance versions.^[8]

 United States

• United States Air Force
• U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Other Applications

Two used Q400s, acquired from Scandinavian Airlines System, were modified by Cascade Aerospace of Abbotsford, British Columbia for France's Sécurité Civile as fire-fighting water bombers in fire season and as transport aircraft off season. The Q400 Airtanker^[9] can drop 10,000 L (22,000 lb) of water in this role compared to Bombardier's CL-415 dedicated water bomber which can drop 6,140 L. The latter, however, is amphibious and requires less infrastructure.

Neptune Aviation of Missoula, Montana have acquired a Q300 as a prototype for future Q200/Q300 water bombers^[10] to replace current P2V aircraft.

Notable incidents and accidents

• 9 June 1995: Ansett New Zealand Flight 703 from Auckland Airport to Palmerston North crashed west of the Tararua Ranges and 16 km east of Palmerston North airport during an instrument approach in bad weather. Four people were killed and most other passengers injured.
• 13 March 2007: All Nippon Airways Flight 1603, a Dash 8 Q400 aircraft, bound from Osaka to Kōchi, nose-landed safely at Kochi airport after the front wheel of the plane failed to deploy. None of the 53 passengers or 4 crew were injured. Bombardier advised all operators to inspect the nose landing-gear mechanism of the aircraft.
• 12 August 2007, at 9:37 local time, a Dash 8 Q400 aircraft skidded off the runway at Gimhae International Airport, Busan, injuring 6 people and damaging the aircraft, particularly the left propeller.^[11][12]
• 9 September 2007: The crew of Scandinavian Airlines flight 1209, en route from Copenhagen to Aalborg, reported problems with the locking mechanism of the right side landing gear, and Aalborg Airport was prepared for an emergency landing. Shortly after touchdown the right wing gear collapsed and the airliner skidded off the runway while fragments of the right propeller shot through the cabin and the right engine caught fire. Of 69 passengers and four crew on board, 11 were sent to hospital, five with only minor injuries.^[13][14][15] About a month earlier the same airplane had had to return to Copenhagen 10 minutes after departure due to problems with the indicator lights of the landing gear. ^{[citation needed]}
• 12 September 2007: Scandinavian Airlines flight 2748 from Copenhagen to Palanga had a similar problem with the landing gear, forcing the plane to land in Vilnius. No passengers or crew were injured. ^{[16] [17] [18]}Immediately after this incident SAS grounded all their 33 Dash-8/Q400 planes and, a few hours later, Bombardier recommended that all Dash-8/Q400s with more than 10,000 flights be grounded until further notice. ^[19]
• 13 September 2007: Following the investigation of the incidents on September 9 and 12 2007 Transport Canada issued an Airworthiness Directive applicable to Bombardier Q400 turboprop aircraft instructing all Q400 aircraft operators to conduct a general visual inspection of the left and right main landing gear system and main landing gear retract actuator jam nut. This effectively grounded all Q400 aircraft until the inspection had been carried out. ^[20][21][22]
• 21 September 2007: An Augsburg Airways Dash 8 bound for Peretola Airport in Florence, Italy experienced a failure of the actuator mechanism on the front landing gear, preventing the gear from folding out. The pilots returned to Munich International Airport and performed an emergency landing. No passengers were harmed in the incident. ^[23][24]
• 10 October 2007: A SAS Denmark Q400 headed for Poland returned to Copenhagen when the pilots got problems with the indicator lights of the front landing gear. The pilots got a yellow indication that the front landing gear hatch didn't close after taking off. Then they heard the hatch closing, then opening and closing again. ^[25][26]

Specifications (Q400)

Data from Bombardier's website^[27]

General characteristics

• Crew: 2
• Capacity: 68-78 passengers, depending on configuration
• Length: 107 ft 9 in (32.84 m)
• Wingspan: 93 ft 3 in (28.42 m)
• Height: 27 ft 5 in (8.34 m)
• Wing area: 679 ft² (63.1 m²)
• Empty weight: 37,888 lb (17,185 kg)
• Useful load: 26,612 lb (12,070 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 64,500 lb (29,257 kg)
• Powerplant: 2× Pratt & Whitney Canada PW150A turboprops, 5,071 shp (3,781 kW) each

Performance

• Cruise speed: 370 knots (425 mph, 685 km/h)
• Range: 1,362 nm (1,567 mi, 2,522 km)
• Service ceiling: 25,000 ft (7,620 m)
• Power/mass: 0.157 hp/lb (257 W/kg)

Dash 8 in popular culture

The Dash 8 was the first artificial intelligence (AI) aircraft in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2002, implemented as a low-quality, traffic-only model. Users converted the model's configuration files to make it a flyable aircraft in the simulator, a modification that also worked in the subsequent 2004 edition. The aircraft is depicted in fictional colors for Airwave, American Pacific and Orbit Airlines.

References

• Hotson, Fred W. The De Havilland Canada Story. Toronto: CANAV Books, 1983. ISBN.
• Kinsey, I. "Dash 8 is Born." Canadian Aviation magazine, June 1983.

External links

• Bombardier Q Series
• Q400 Website
• Currently flying aircraft
• DHC-8-100/200 information

Related content

Related development

• de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
• de Havilland Canada Dash 7

Comparable aircraft

• Antonov An-24/Xian Y-7/Xian MA60
• ATR 42 and 72
• Dornier 328
• Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia
• Fokker F27 and F50
• Saab 2000 and 340

Designation sequence

• DHC-5 - DHC-6 - DHC-7 - DHC-8

Related lists

• List of airliners

See also

de Havilland Canada aircraft models
DHC-1 · DHC-2 · DHC-3 · DHC-4 · DHC-5 · DHC-6 · DHC-7 · DHC-8 CS2F Tracker · Gipsy Moth · Tiger Moth · Fox Moth · Mosquito

Lists relating to aviation
General	Timeline of aviation · Aircraft · Aircraft manufacturers · Aircraft engines · Aircraft engine manufacturers · Airports · Airlines
Military	Air forces · Aircraft weapons · Missiles · Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) · Experimental aircraft
Notable incidents & accidents	Military aviation · Airliners · General aviation · Famous aviation-related deaths
Records	Flight airspeed record · Flight distance record · Flight altitude record · Flight endurance record · Most produced aircraft

Donate to Wikimedia