Kootenay Airways

Kootenay Airways, or Awyr Cwtnae in Welsh, is a commercial airline in British Columbia offering scheduled domestic and continental services.

Kootenay Airways serves twenty-six destinations (twenty domestic, six continental) in three countries.

History
Kootenay Airways was established in 1938 with a single DH.89C Dragon Rapide airliner to fly between Cranbrook and Blaenau; the Dragon Rapide carried up to eight passengers over the 129 nmi (149 statute miles), which at a cruising speed of 115 knots took just over an hour.

In 1983, Kootenay Airways acquired and absorbed Awyr Cymru Newydd, which had begun to struggle after expanding too quickly. Almost immediately a third of the inherited routes, such those between Blaenau and Toronto, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Dallas were discontinued; the Las Vegas and Portland services were later reinstated. With the absorption of ACN, Kootenay Airways became the "flag carrier" of Cymru Newydd, in recognition of which the Welsh form of the airline's name, Awyr Cwtnae, was introduced in 1984. Aircraft are lettered with the English name on the port side, and the Welsh name on the starboard side.

Incidents

 * 7 May 1982: Short 330-200 VB-KOL (c/n 3063/1981), operating as Flight KY 75 from Calgary, Alberta, Canada to Cranbrook, tried to takeoff from a slush-covered runway in snowy weather. The aircraft didn't gain enough speed, so the takeoff was aborted. The remaining runway length was too short, and the aircraft overran into a ditch. There were no injuries amongst the 23 passengers and 3 crew aboard, and the aircraft, which suffered only minor damage, was repaired and returned to service.


 * 27 October 1991: Beech 99 VB-NWN (c/n U-168/1978), operating as Flight KY 204 from Cranbrook to Vernon, was climbing en route from Cranbrook with two crew and seven passengers when the left engine's oil pressure gauge began to show fluctuations. The crew requested a return to Cranbrook and ATC cleared the aircraft to descend on vectors. During the descent they were asked if fire and rescue were needed and they declined. On short final the aircraft suddenly rolled left, pitched down and collided with the ground and a car, and there was a post impact fire. All on board were rescued, however the pilot died a few hours later in hospital; the co-pilot succumbed to his injuries 2 weeks after the accident.
 * Investigators concluded that it is likely that during routine maintenance the oil reservoir cap on the left engine was left unsecured, and, as there was no complete pre-flight inspection of the aircraft, the unsecured cap was not detected and the left engine vented significant amounts of oil during operation. As well, a non-mandatory modification designed to limit oil loss when the oil cap is left unsecured had not been made to the engines; oil leaking from the left engine whilst the aircraft was repositioned was pointed out to the crew, who failed to determine its source before the flight departure.
 * Further, on final approach the aircraft slowed to below VRef speed. When power was applied, likely only to the right engine, the aircraft speed was below that required to maintain directional control, and it yawed and rolled left, and pitched down. A partially effective recovery was likely initiated by reducing the right engine’s power; however, there was insufficient altitude to complete the recovery, and the aircraft collided with the ground. Damage caused by the impact compromised the fuel system, and metal friction caused sparks that started fires, whilst the battery continued to supply power to the electrical system, resulting in arcing that ignited further fires, including in the cockpit area. Impact-related injuries sustained by the pilots and most of the passengers limited their ability to extricate themselves from the aircraft.


 * 17 March 2012: DHBC-6 Twin Otter VB-CYT (c/n C1094/1970), operating as Flight KY 266 from Cranbrook to Blue River, was damaged in a landing accident. Because Blue River Airport - an aerodrome used primarily for general aviation - does not have a published instrument approach procedure, approaches must be made under visual flight rules. Deteriorating weather, along with the lack of approach aids and runway markings, hampered the pilot's ability to establish the aircraft onto a stable final approach prior to crossing the threshold; the company's standard operating procedures for stabilized approaches were not followed, and an unstabilized approach was allowed to continue resulting in the pilot's inability to position the aircraft over the centre of the runway as it settled to land. The left main gear entered the deeper snow at the edge of the runway, causing the aircraft to veer into the snowbank. There were only minor injuries amongst the two crew and eight passengers, and the aircraft was repaired and returned to service.


 * 9 February 2013: Beech 99 VB-NWM (c/n U-167/1978), operating as Flight KY 198 from Blaenau to Invermere, was damaged in a landing accident. IFR clearance was cancelled at 9,000 feet ASL above the airport and a VFR approach to Runway 19 was carried out. After the aircraft touched down on the runway, directional control was lost, skidding sideways and departing the runway to the left. The aircraft collided nose first with a large snowbank; the nosewheel collapsed and both propellers were damaged. There were no injuries, and the aircraft was repaired and returned to service.

Fleet
Kootenay Airways operate a total of 58 aircraft.

Current

 * ATR 42-600 - 8 (2018 to date)
 * Avro RJ85 - 12 (2002 to date)
 * Beech 99 - 8 (1983 to date), inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd, to be retired by 2025
 * DHBC-5C Swan - 1 (1969 to date), delivered new
 * DHBC-5(F) Swan - 2 (1983 to date), bought second-hand
 * DHBC-6 Twin Otter - 9 (1968 to date), three delivered new, six inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd, to be retired by 2027
 * Short 330-200 - 14 (1980 to date), delivered new, to be retired by 2027
 * Sukhoi Su-80 - 5 (2020 to date), +23 on order to be delivered by 2027 to replace Twin Otter, Short 330, and Beech 99

Historic

 * BAe 146-200 - 4 (1984–2019), ordered by Awyr Cymru Newydd but delivered after merger
 * Beech 99 - 4 (1983–2022), inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd
 * Boeing 737-100 - 4 (1983–1984), inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd, sold due to downsizing; never repainted
 * DHBC DH.89C Dragon Rapide - 1 (1938–1963), delivered new
 * DHBC-1 Dove - 3 (1948–1977), delivered new, sold to Northern Air
 * DHBC-2 Heron 3B - 10 (1962–1989), four delivered new, four inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd, two ex Air BC in 1973
 * DHBC-4 Skylark - 3 (1962–1979), delivered new, sold to Columbia Air Cargo
 * DHBC-5C Swan - 1 (1969 to date), delivered new
 * DHBC-6 Twin Otter - 4 (1968–1995), two delivered new (sold to Utari Air in 1989), two inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd (sold to Island Express Air in 1995)
 * DHBC-7A Trident 7A - 4 (1983–2003), inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd
 * NAMC YS-11 - 7 (1983–1985), inherited from Awyr Cymru Newydd, sold due to downsizing; never repainted

BC-made aircraft
''Note: a green background indicates an aircraft in service, a yellow background indicates a retired aircraft, and a pink background indicates an aircraft lost in an accident.

Other aircraft
= Routes = Kootenay Airways have codeshare agreements with Inter-Dominion Air Lines, Pacific Coastal Airlines since 2003, and with Panagra Airways.

Entries with a green background indicates a destination in British Columbia.