Seair
| Headquarters | 4640 Inglis Drive Richmond R2 1WD |
| IATA code | SE |
| ICAO code | SS1 |
| Call sign | SEAIR |
| Hubs | Vancouver–Coal Harbour Water Airport, Vancouver |
| Services | Scheduled domestic, charter |
Seair is a commercial airline in British Columbia offering domestic scheduled services to seven destinations and charter services using seaplanes.
History[edit]
Seair was established in 1997.
Incidents[edit]
- 28 December 1999: Cessna 208 Caravan 675 VB-GGG (c/n 208-00310/1999), operating a charter flight from Abbotsford to the Bahama Islands, West Indies, crashed on take-off. Departing for the first leg of the trip, to Billings, Montana, USA, as the aircraft was climbing through 400 feet above ground level, it became uncontrollable as the pilot retracted the flaps from ten to zero degrees; the aircraft then banked left before descending rapidly and crashing into a field about half a mile south of the runway threshold, in a left bank with a nearly level pitch attitude. The aircraft had been 510 lbs over its MTOW and icing on the wings reduced the lift being produced, leading to an aerodynamic stall when the flaps were retracted. The pilot and five passengers all escaped safely.
- 26 July 2019: Cessna 208 Caravan 675 VB-GRL (c/n 208-00501/2008), operating a charter flight from Vancouver to a fishing lodge 66 miles northwest of Port Hardy, crashed into Addenbroke Island in heavy fog. The lone pilot and three of the eight passengers aboard were killed.
- 21 February 2020: De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver VB-ZZJ (c/n 1019/1956) was damaged after being stolen from its mooring at Sir James Spilsbury International Water Airport in Coal Harbour, Vancouver and impacted an unoccupied Harbour Air DHC-3T Turbo Otter that was also moored at the dock. The Beaver suffered significant damage to its wing, but was repaired and returned to service.
- 15 July 2021: Cessna 208 Caravan 675 VB-GSS (c/n 208-00341/2001), escaped from its dock after engine startup, pulling the untied guide rope out of the dockhand's hand, and travelled forwards until striking the rear of a Harbour Air Turbo Otter moored at the dock. After the strike, the pilot of VB-GSS shut the engine down. There were no injuries; the Caravan sustained substantial damage, but was repaired and returned to service.
Fleet[edit]
Seair operate a total of five aircraft.
Current[edit]
- Beriev Be-103 - 3 (2004 to date), delivered new
- Cessna Caravan - 3 (1999 to date), delivered new; +2 retired
- DHBC-6 Twin Otter - 2 (1997 to date), acquired second-hand
- DHC-2 Beaver - 1 (1997 to date), acquired second-hand; +1 retired
BC-made aircraft[edit]
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.
| Type | Registration | C/n | Blt | Acquisition | Disposal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DHBC-6 Twin Otter | VB-SEA | C996 | 1969 | 1997, bought from Pacific Western, converted to floatplane | in service |
| DHBC-6 Twin Otter | VB-SEB | C997 | 1969 | 1997, bought from Pacific Western, converted to floatplane | in service |
Other aircraft[edit]
| Type | Registration | C/n | Blt | Acquisition | Disposal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beriev Be-103 | VB-SEC | 3143 | 2004 | 2004, delivered new | in service |
| Beriev Be-103 | VB-SED | 3144 | 2004 | 2004, delivered new | in service |
| Beriev Be-103 | VB-SEE | 3145 | 2004 | 2004, delivered new | in service |
| Cessna 208 Caravan 675 | VB-GGG | 208-00310 | 1999 | 1999, delivered new | 1999, destroyed |
| Cessna 208 Caravan 675 | VB-GMW | 208-00528 | 2011 | 2011, delivered new | in service |
| Cessna 208 Caravan 675 | VB-GRL | 208-00501 | 2008 | 2008, delivered new | 2019, destroyed |
| Cessna 208 Caravan 675 | VB-GSS | 208-00341 | 2001 | 2001, delivered new | in service |
| Cessna 208 Caravan 675 | VB-GUS | 208-00592 | 2017 | 2001, delivered new | in service |
| De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver | VB-OCG | 1000 | 1956 | 1997, bought from private owner (BC) | in service |
| De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver | VB-ZZJ | 1019 | 1956 | 1997, bought from private owner (BC) | 2017, sold to private buyer (BC) |
Routes[edit]
Entries with a green background indicates a destination in British Columbia.
| Airport | Service area | Destination | Aircraft | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Campbell River Harbour (XHC) | Domestic | Vancouver–Coal Harbour (XXH) | Be-103 | |
| Ganges (XGS) | Domestic | Vancouver (XVR) | Be-103 | |
| Nanaimo Harbour (XZN) | Domestic | Vancouver (XVR) | DHBC-6 | |
| Vancouver–Coal Harbour (XXH) | DHBC-6 | |||
| Pender Harbour (XPH) | Domestic | Vancouver (XVR) | Be-103 | |
| Tahsis (XTS) | Domestic | Vancouver (XVR) | Be-103, DHBC-6 | |
| Vancouver (XVR) | Domestic | Ganges (XGS) | Be-103 | |
| Nanaimo Harbour (XZN) | DHBC-6 | |||
| Pender Harbour (XPH) | Be-103 | |||
| Tahsis (XTS) | Be-103, DHBC-6 | |||
| Vancouver–Coal Harbour (XXH) | Domestic | Campbell River Harbour (XHC) | Be-103 | |
| Nanaimo Harbour (XZN) | DHBC-6 |