page_title: History of Widerøe
section_title: Establishment
hierarchical_section_title: History of Widerøe / Establishment
caption_attribution_description: Widerøe's Flyveselskap LN-BAR Stinson SR.8 or SR.9 Reliant at Oslo (uncertain)
context_page_description: Widerøe, a regional airline based in Norway, was established by Viggo Widerøe, Einar Isdahl and Arild Widerøe on 19 February 1934. The airline started off with a combination of scheduled, aerial photography and general aviation services using seaplanes. It lost its route concessions to Norwegian Air Lines in 1935 and was subsequently bought by that company, for whom it operated several minor routes. World War II hindered Widerøe from operating any flights between 1939 and 1945. After the war Widerøe started flying various seaplane routes that were too small for DNL and its successor, Scandinavian Airlines System. These routes were commonly flown using Noorduyn Norseman and de Havilland Canada Otter aircraft. During the 1960s Widerøe attempted operating Douglas DC-3s for charter flights, but soon closed those operations.
  A national network of regional airports started being constructed in the late 1960s and Widerøe was awarded the right to operate the subsidized routes. From 1968 the airline introduced the Twin Otter, which it eventually operated a dozen of. From 1981 de Havilland Canada Dash 7s were introduced on the main routes.
context_section_description: Widerøe was established as a merger between two small airlines established during the 1930s. Lotsberg & Skappel, owned by Helge Skappel, Leiv Brun, Ditlef Smith and Erik Engnæs, operated a Gipsy Moth. Widerøe & Bjørneby, which was founded by Viggo Widerøe and Halvor Bjørneby, operated a Simmonds Spartan. The two started a cooperation between themselves and Norsk Aero Klubb to establish air shows in Eastern Norway. During the winter the aircraft were stationed at mountain resorts and generated revenue by flying skiers into the wilderness. Advertisement flights were introduced, where a company or product name was painted on the hull, with a neon-light version underneath, and leaflets dropped from the aircraft.
  Viggo Widerøe traveled to the United States with NOK 25,000 in 1933 and flew back with a Waco Cabin. The same year the company bought five used de Havilland DH.60 Moths from the Norwegian Army Air Service and started aviation schools in Oslo and Bergen. Widerøe's Flyveselskap A/S was founded by Viggo Widerøe, Einar Isdahl and Arild Widerøe on 19 February 1934. Skis were equipped on the Cabins and Spartan during winter. The company also started ambulance flights. In April the company expanded their share capital from NOK 25,000 to NOK 65,000. The money was used to buy a seaplane variant Cabin and on 15 June it started flying the post route from Oslo via Kristiansand and Stavanger to Haugesund. During the summer the company arranged a summer camp for youth and bought a sail plane.
  The company started a cooperation with four regional steam ship companies—Vesteraalens, Nordenfjeldske, Stavangerske and Arendalske. They established the company Norske Kystflyveruter On 21 November 1934 and applied for all concessions to fly postal services around the coast, as well as to Gothenburg in Sweden. At the same time, Fred. Olsen & Co. and Bergenske bought [Norwegian Air Lines (DNL) and applied for the same routes. Widerøe intended to use seaplanes, while DNL chose land planes. The government urged to companies to split the routes between them, but before the negotiations were completed, Nygaardsvold's Cabinet was appointed and granted DNL a ten-year concession for all domestic flights.
  After losing all scheduled flights, Widerøe expanded to Northern Norway and started taxi flights. The company expanded into the cartography business in 135. In Oslo the company built a summer base for sea planes at Ingierstand in Oppegård, and a winter base for ski planes at Bogstadvannet. Around Bergen the airline  landed at cruise ships and offer flights to tourists to see the fjords and mountains. In March 1936, 51 percent of the company was taken over by DNL as part of a private placement. This allowed DNL to transfer some of its concessions to Widerøe, who started flying Oslo–Lillehammer/Tretten–Gålå–Fefor–Tyinholmen/Nystuen, mainly aimed at tourists. A Bellanca Senior Pacemaker was bought for the route. Widerøe also wet operated DNL's route from Oslo to Gothenburg, the Tromsø–Honningsvåg route and Bergen–Vadheim–Slidre–Balestrand. These routes were partially flown using the Stinson Reliant.
  Widerøe carried out a cartography expedition to Antarctica in 1937, financed by Lars Christensen. The airline carried out 44 flights along a 4,000 kilometers (2,500 mi) section of coast, covering at least 50 kilometers (31 mi) inland. The airline operated a route from Trondheim and Bodø between July and September. The base at Bogstad in Bergen was expanded, and the company was granted a monopoly on all aerial photography flights for the Mapping Authority. The Bogstad workshop and Birger Hønningstad started a cooperation in 1938 where Widerøe built the Hønningstad Norge planes. The same year, a plane went to Svalbard for cartographic work, and a route was started from Trondheim via Brønnøysund, Sandnessjøen, Bodø, Narvik and Harstad to Tromsø. For three months, the route was expanded to Kirkenes via Hammerfest and Vadsø.
  Following the break-out of World War II on 2 September 1939, all pilots became conscripted and a ban on civilian aviation was enforced. DNL
caption: Loading post onto a Stinson Reliant LN-BAR in Oslo in 1936
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