Norving A/S was a regional airline that operated in Norway between 1971 and 1993. It had roots back to the establishment of Varangfly in 1959. At its peak, the company had eight bases and 27 aircraft.[1]
Varangfly was founded on 24 July 1959 by Bjarne Zakariassen, Bjørn Rist and Odd Bentzen. In 1971, the company merged with Tromsø-based Nor-Wings, and the following year it bought Bodø-based Nordlandsfly. At that time the airline was renamed Norving.[1] With the take-over, Norving had ambulance aircraft covering all of Northern Norway.[2]
With the construction of the regional airports in Western Troms and in Finnmark, Norving competed to get the concession for subsidies from the Ministry of Transport. The government chose instead to grant the concession to Widerøe, who had been operating the other parts of the regional airports in Western and Northern Norway.[3]
Norving continued to work for more regional airports in Finnmark, and was instrumental in establishing them in Berlevåg, Båtsfjord, Gamvik, Hasvik and Kjøllefjord.[2] During the 1980s, Norving made a massive expansion into Southern Norway, and tried to capture concessions for routes feeding the regional airport to the large cities. In particular, the airline established itself at Skien Airport, Geiteryggen, Geilo Airport, Dagali, Fagernes Airport, Leirin, Sandefjord Airport, Torp, Stord Airport, Sørstokken and Hamar Airport, Stafsberg. However, Norving could not make enough revenue to make a profit, and was forced to massively close down routes.[2] At the most, the company had eight bases and 27 aircraft.[1] By 1989, there was only two bases and four planes still in operation, before the company filed for bankruptcy in 1993.[1] Subsidized routes in Northern Norway were taken over by Widerøe.[2]
Through its history, Norving operated the following aircraft:[4]
| Model | Quantity | Built | First in | Last out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Piper Cub | 2 | 1943–44 | 1960 | 1965 |
| Honningstad C.5 Polar | 1 | 1948 | 1960 | 1977 |
| Beech Twin Bonanza | 1 | 1962 | 1963 | |
| Cessna 180 | 1 | 1961 | 1961 | 1963 |
| Cessna 185 | 5 | 1961 | 1961 | 1971 |
| Noorduyn Norseman | 2 | 1941–44 | 1965 | 1972 |
| Republic Seabee | 1 | 1948 | 1966 | 1967 |
| de Havilland Canada Beaver | 3 | 1956–67 | 1972 | 1981 |
| de Havilland Canada Otter | 1 | 1954 | 1967 | 1982 |
| Britten-Norman Islander | 8 | 1969–76 | 1970 | 1992 |
| Piper PA-31 Navajo | 7 | 1971–80 | 1972 | 1988 |
| Cessna 150 | 1 | 1969 | 1969 | 1971 |
| Piper Cherokee | 1 | 1967 | 1967 | 1972 |
| Cessna 206 | 11 | 1968–77 | 1970 | 1982 |
| Partenavia P.68 | 1 | 1975 | 1975 | 1978 |
| Cessna 310 | 2 | 1975–76 | 1975 | 1978 |
| Cessna 404 | 5 | 1977–80 | 1977 | 1986 |
| Cessna 441 | 5 | 1975–82 | 1979 | 1990 |
| Beech 99 | 2 | 1968 | 1984 | 1987 |
| Fairchild Metroliner | 2 | 1981–82 | 1983 | 1989 |
| Dornier 228 | 9 | 1982–86 | 1982 | 1992 |
| Saab 340 | 3 | 1985–87 | 1985 | 1989 |
Destinations served by Norving:[5]
Companies
Aviation
