Originally Posted by Solid Rust Twotter
Have the operators expressed enough interest and made the deposits required to make the new Twotters a worthwhile project for Viking and are they finally going ahead?
We were told at the conference in September 2006 that a final go / no-go decision would be made during the first half of 2007. Viking is very well financed, very solidly backed, so if sufficient deposits can be converted into firm orders and the overall economics look good, there is no reason to prevent them from going ahead with the project.
The key issue, of course, is how many operators are willing to ante up three an a half large for a new Twin Otter. For non-commercial operators who need the specialty capabilities of the aircraft (e.g. governments, military, oil industry, research), the capital cost is not a significant issue - it's half the price of a new King Air. For commercial operators who charter the aircraft out by the hour or on an ACMI basis, the cap cost is a fairly big pill to swallow.