Widerøe Marks 90th Anniversary With Upcycled De Havilland Dash-8 Travel Tags

Aviationtag, the Germany-based company creating metal tags from retired air frames, and Widerøe, a regional airline in Norway, have collaborated to celebrate the carrier’s 90th anniversary, creating special travel tags from a now-retired De Havilland Canada Dash-8 Q300 aircraft.

Limited edition release

According to Aviationtag, the companies will celebrate Widerøe’s 90th birthday by releasing limited-edition travel tags, made from the fuselage of an ex-Widerøe De Havilland Canada Dash-8 Q300 aircraft, which was registered as LN-WFP. Bombardier, which owned the aircraft program at the time, delivered the Q300 to Widerøe in May 1998, with the airline retiring the airframe in June 2023. According to ch-aviation data, the Dash-8 Q300 had accumulated 44,954 flight hours (FH) and 56,999 flight cycles (FC) during its operational history with the Norwegian carrier.

The limited-edition collection will feature tags in four different colors, with prices starting at €29.95 ($32.43). According to Tobias Richter, the chief commercial officer (CCO) of Aviationtag, it was an honor to transform parts of the Widerøe aircraft into a special collection, allowing aviation enthusiasts to own a piece of Norwegian aviation history.

“This collaboration exemplifies our commitment to sustainability and preserving the heritage of iconic aircraft.”

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Celebrating its history and aircraft

Meanwhile, Christian Skaug, the CCO of Widerøe, added that the special travel tags not only celebrated the airline’s 90th anniversary but paid homage to the Dash 8 aircraft that have served with the airline since the 1990s, when the carrier first took delivery of the turboprop aircraft.

“We are excited to offer aviation enthusiasts a chance to own a part of Widerøe’s fantastic history, while supporting sustainable practices within the aviation industry.”

Photo: Aviationtag

Ch-aviation data showed that the Norwegian carrier has 51 aircraft in its fleet, with the majority of them being some variant of the Dash 8 aircraft family. The airline has 24 Dash 8 Q100, three Q200, three Q300, and 16 Q400 aircraft, in addition to three Emrbaer E190-E2 aircraft. The airline received its E190-E2s between April and June 2018.

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Acquired by Norwegian

In July 2022, Widerøe and Norwegian Air Shuttle (trading as Norwegian) announced that the two airlines would collaborate more closely, which will include an interlining agreement on both airline’s full network, enabling seamless travel for all Norway-based passengers.

However, on July 6, 2023, Norwegian and WF Holding, the parent company of Widerøe, entered into an acquisition agreement, with the former looking to purchase the latter. At the time, Norwegian emphasized that the regional airline would continue existing on its own with separate branding, organization, and headquarters in Bodø, Norway.

Photo: Henk Vrieselaar | Shutterstock

The Norwegian Competition Authority (Konkurransetilsynet) approved the acquisition in December 2023, after a lengthy investigation period, which included looking into whether the joint company would have a dominant position in the Norwegian aviation market, which would have potentially resulted in increased fares for consumers.

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