West Norway Airlines

The airline was established in Bergen in 1946.[1] The first aircraft were operational in 1948,[2] consisting of three three-passenger Republic RC-3 Seabees and a one-passenger Luscombe 8A Silvaire. The airline was initially engaged in various general aviation activities. An important task was air ambulance services. However, the airline never signed a fixed contract with the health authorities and had to get every trip refunded on a case for case basis form the National Insurance Administration.[1]

The West Coast of Norway had only one land airport during until 1955, Stavanger Airport, Sola. Flights along the coast and to the capital were therefore limited to seaplanes. Norwegian Air Lines resumed its pre–Second World War route from Stavanger via Haugesund Airport, Storesundsskjær to Bergen Airport, Hjellestad in 1946, using Junkers Ju 52 seaplanes.[3] From 1948 they extended the service north from Bergen, calling at Ålesund Airport, Sørneset; Kristiansund and Trondheim Airport, Værnes.[4] The airline pulled out of these routes after the 1949 summer season.[3][4]

Air ambulance services were carried out between 1947 and 1957, mostly using the Seabees. The busiest period was in 1952 to 1954, when there broke out a polio epidemic and patients needed to be flown to Bergen for isolation and treatment at Haukeland Hospital.[5]

West Norway Airlines took over the Bergen to Trondheim route, which commenced on 14 May 1951. They kept using the former aerodromes, although the re-established Trondheim Airport, Jonsvatnet as a reserve airport for Trondheim.[6] For the 1951 season only, West Norway Airlines operated out of Bergen Airport, Hjellestad. However, after SAS pulled out of the airport after that season, West Norway Airlines chose to retreat back to Sandviken.[7]

The Seabees soon proved to be too small and instead bought an eight-passenger Short Sealands were bought.[8][9] Widerøe took over the southern portion, but was not able to make money on it and terminated operations after the first summer.[3] West Norway Airlines therefore took over also this segment from 1952.[10] For this a second Sealand was delivered.[8]

With the opening of Bergen Airport, Flesland in 1955, West Norway Airlines commenced a service from Bergen to Stavanger. They bought a land Norsk Flyindustri Finnmark 5A in 1955 for this use, with a capacity for three passengers.[11] It soon proved too small and the following season the airline acquired a new de Havilland Heron aircraft.[12]

The airline was involved in the attempts to establish a regional airport in Florø. Plans were launched in the mid-1950s that an 800-meter (2,600 ft) runway be built which would allow West Norway Airlines to connect to Bergen with a Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer.[13] The government approved the plans in 1956 and construction of a 400-meter (1,300 ft) runway commenced later that year. However, the authorities deemed the Twin Pioneer unsuitable for winter operations and both these plans and the airport construction fell flat.[14]

Similar plans were launched in Ålesund. Initially Aukra Airport, Gossen was selected as Møre og Romsdal's central airport, but West Norway Airlines instead proposed building a short runway on the island of Vigra and operate to it using the Twin Pioneer. Although West Norway Airlines would never receive concessions to operate land planes from Ålesund, the site was ultimately selected for Ålesund Airport, Vigra, when opened in 1958.[15]

The route to Haguesund continued until 29 September 1956. From then the local authorities stated that they would rather than the subsidies be used to build a land airport than retain sea services.[10] Braathens SAFE was selected as the operator of the coastal routes from Ålesund instead of West Norway Airlines. Following the icing incident leading to the crash of Braathens SAFE Flight 253 in 1956, the aviation authorities banned winter operations of the Herons. Thus newer aircraft were needed. Braathens SAFE offered to cross-subsidize the coastal route Bergen–Ålesund–Trondheim in exchange for receiving a monopoly on the profitable Oslo route.[16] Left without concessions, the airline filed for bankruptcy at the end of the 1957 season.[1]

The following is a list of scheduled destination served by West Norway Airlines.

The following aircraft were operated by West Norway Airlines:

• Aarsand, Knut; Bakka, Dag. "Hjellestad sjøflyhavn 1948–1952". Årsskrift 2004–2005 (in Norwegian). Fana Historielag. pp. 38–42. ISSN 0809-5256.
• Hjelle, Bjørn Owe (2007). Ålesund lufthavn Vigra (in Norwegian). Valderøya. ISBN 978-82-92055-28-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Hagby, Kay (1998). Fra Nielsen & Winther til Boeing 747 (in Norwegian). Drammen: Hagby. ISBN 8299475201.
• Olsen-Hagen, Bernt; Gulstad, Anne Blix; Gynnild, Olav (2010). Kristiansund lufthavn, Kvernberget – Dokumentasjon for arkivmessig bevaring (PDF) (in Norwegian). Norwegian Aviation Museum. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 January 2015. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
• Østerbø, Kjell (2005). Da Bergen tok av (in Norwegian). Avinor. ISBN 82-303-0495-5.
• Reitan, Sverre Utne (2003). Luftfarten på Haugalandet fra 1914 til 2004 (in Norwegian). Karmøy: Eget Forlag.
• Tjomsland, Audun; Wilsberg, Kjell (1995). Braathens SAFE 50 år: Mot alle odds. Oslo. ISBN 82-990400-1-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Vik, Knut L. (2003). "Trondheim lufthavn Jonsvatnet 1935–1939" (PDF). Strinda den gang da (in Norwegian). Trondheim: Strinda historielag. pp. 85–107. ISBN 82-92357-02-5. ISSN 1502-2315. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 December 2013. Retrieved 18 December 2013.