Norsk Forurensningskontroll

Norsk Forurensningskontroll

IATA ICAO Callsign
Founded	1983
Ceased operations	1986
Operating bases	Bodø Airport Hammerfest Airport Kristiansund Airport, Kvernberget
Fleet size	4
Destinations
Headquarters	Bodø, Norway
Key people	Harald Olsen (CEO)

Norsk Forurensningskontroll A/S ("Norwegian Pollution Control") or NFK was a Norwegian airline which operated a fleet of four de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft. The company was founded in 1983 and initially intended to operate the aircraft to spray solvents on oil spills. However, the company failed to establish such a service and instead operated the aircraft for charter services, before folding in 1986. The airline was based at Bodø Airport, with additional bases at Hammerfest Airport and Kristiansund Airport, Kvernberget, and had close cooperation with the airline Widerøe.

History

One of the airline's Twin Otters

The airline was established in 1983 with a share capital of NOK 50,000,^[1] and with Harald Olsen as managing director.^[2] In November 1983, they announced plans to establish a fleet of four Twin Otters which would carry out oil pollution control along the coast. The company aimed to have two aircraft operative in June 1984, and be fully operational with 35 to 40 employees and four aircraft by 1985, when all-year oil drilling would start in the Norwegian Sea.^[3] Use of aircraft for oil spill reduction was at the time established in the United Kingdom, and Norsk Forurensningskontroll aimed to create a similar preparedness for Norway in cooperation with the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority.^[4] The cost of the four aircraft was NOK 35 million. Operation started in May 1984 with a converted aircraft from Widerøe. The airline stated that they hoped to have 30 to 50 operations per year.^[2]

In September, one of the aircraft was displayed at Farnborough Airshow, and Norsk Forurensningskontroll stated that they hoped to sell the technology abroad.^[5] The idea of having an oil spill services was abandoned by the authorities and by the oil industry, and instead NFK started using their aircraft for various charter purposes, such as bird watching and parachuting.^[6] In 1986, the company flew a charter job with weekly delivery of supplies and a medical doctor to a French–Canadian expedition to the North Pole.^[7] The aircraft was based in Svalbard, and a number of other scientific and exploration expeditions were supported, including radar measurements of glaciers.^[6]

The company filed for bankruptcy in October 1986. At the time it had NOK 29 million in debt, while its assets were three Twin Otters with an estimated value of NOK 21 million. At the time, one plane had been moved to Portugal and had been re-registered. The largest creditors were Sparebanken Nord, who was owed 13 million and had collateral in two aircraft, Sparebanken Nordland, who were owed NOK 11 million and had collateral in one aircraft, and Kredittkassen/Fiskernes Bank, who were owed NOK 1.9 million. The banks estimated they had lost NOK 8 million on the venture.^[1]

Organization and aircraft

The company had its head office and main base at Bodø Airport, with secondary operating bases at Hammerfest Airport and Kristiansund Airport, Kvernberget. It cooperated with Widerøe, who are also based in Bodø, regarding access to crew and technical services.^[3] The planes were stationed on 24-hour duty, with a reaction time of 30 minutes from an alarm during daytime and 60 minutes during night. Tests showed that aircraft could be used for spills up to 5,000 tonnes (4,900 long tons; 5,500 short tons), given that it was the right type of oil, the spill was not too close to land, that it happened in daylight, and that there was no fog or bad weather. The solvent has to be added within two hours of the spilling, before the oil mixes with the saltwater. The aircraft method would not be effective against a "standard blowout".^[4] The four Twin Otter aircraft were fitted with two 1,550-liter (340 imp gal; 410 U.S. gal) tanks of solvent, which would be sprayed on an oil leak using nozzles behind the wings.^[3]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Banker taper to konkurs i Bodø-selskap" (in Norwegian). Norwegian News Agency. 21 October 1986. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Fly som oljevern" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang: p. 11. 18 May 1984. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Fly skal tas i bruk mot oljesøl Bodø" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. Norwegian News Agency: p. 16. 30 November 1983. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Wego, Nina (25 May 1984). "Kjemisk stoff mot oljeutslipp" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten: p. 9. 
5. ^ Guhnfeldt, Cato (7 September 1984). "Oljevernfly fra Norge kan bli eksportvare" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten: p. 24. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Larstuvold, Ulf (2000). "Farvel, Twin Otter". Flynytt (Norsk Aero Klubb) (3). Archived from the original on 25 September 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/61xvhcNrF. Retrieved 25 September 2011. 
7. ^ Guhnfeldt, Cato (21 January 1986). "Norsk fly med forsyninger til polekspedisjon" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten: p. 13.