Twin Otters are nothing new in the Canadian North but a California company has supplied an Alberta company with a new version of the venerable design. G-Sky Aviation of Fort McMurray recently took delivery of aIKHANA RWMI DHC-6-200HG Twin Otter. The aircraft is a top-to-bottom rebuild and modification of a de Havilland DHC-6-200 that gives it increased payload and modernization throughout. G-Sky is building its business around the workhorse as it serves the booming bitumen industry in the resource-rich area of Canada. “I love seeing new operations move into business around one of our products and I think we will see G-Sky Aviation prove to be a savvy enterprise,” said Bo Alksninis, CEO of IKHANA.
IKHANA, of Murietta, Calif., takes high-time Twin Otters and refurbishes them to as-new status structurally and adds modern amenities like new avionics, better air conditioning, new cabin options and a multitude of options. The STC also permits a gross-weight increase for the 200 Series aircraft to 12,500 pounds and other enhancements. “Operations are allowed with the full 620 shaft horsepower of its PT6A-27 engines effectively transforming the operation of a DHC-6-200 to match the capabilities of a DHC-6-300 aircraft,” IKHANA said in a news release. De Havilland stopped making Twin Otters in the mid-1980s. The current type certificate holder, Viking Air, of Victoria, British Columbia, is now manufacturing a current model of the aircraft and has dubbed it the 400 Series.
