De Havilland Canada Dash 8-100

Updated: October 2026 – A small, almost stocky high-wing aircraft touches down, the horizontal stabilizer perches on top of the fin, and the propellers spin with four blades: if you run into that in Norway or Canada, you have a good chance of looking at a De Havilland Canada Dash 8-100. It is the original version of the Dash 8 family, from which the long Q400 later emerged. It has not been built for over 20 years, and yet many examples still fly today in the tough everyday work of short runways. Here you will learn how to identify it reliably, what separates it from its sisters and where you can still catch it.

What is the Dash 8-100?

At the end of the seventies, De Havilland Canada had the four-engine Dash 7 in its lineup, a short-takeoff aircraft that excelled on tiny runways. For many regional airlines, though, that was not so important. What bothered them most was the cost of four engines. From 1980, the manufacturer therefore pursued a new concept: the proven basic shape of the Dash 7 with just two, but more powerful engines, better cruise performance and lower operating costs. The extreme short-takeoff capability was given up in return.

The result rolled out of the hangar in Downsview near Toronto on April 19, 1983 and flew for the first time on June 20, 1983. As early as 1984, the Canadian regional airline NorOntair put the type into service, and in the same year Piedmont Airlines became the first customer from the US. Under the designation DHC-8-100, this began a family that later grew to four series.

The Dash 8-100 is powered by two turboprops of the Pratt & Whitney Canada PW120 series, depending on the sub-variant PW120, PW120A or PW121, with an output of around 1,800 shaft horsepower. You can find more about the engine manufacturer on the page about Pratt & Whitney. The cabin seats 37 to 39 passengers in a 2+2 layout. At about 270 knots, or roughly 500 km/h, it is slower than the later series but entirely adequate for short regional routes.

Four owners in 40 years

The history of the Dash 8-100 is also a history of company sales. When it was developed, De Havilland Canada belonged to the Canadian state. In 1986 Boeing bought the company but parted with it again after a few years, and in 1992 Bombardier took over. Under Bombardier, the Dash 8 ran for a long time as part of the “Q Series”. In 2019 the program passed from Bombardier to Longview Aviation Capital, which revived the old name De Havilland Canada.

For spotters, that explains why photo databases and fleet lists show “de Havilland Canada” as the manufacturer for one aircraft and “Bombardier” for another. Depending on when an aircraft was built and which source you use, both can be found. You can read more about the company history on the pages about De Havilland Canada and Bombardier.

The sub-variants of Series 100

Within Series 100 there are several sub-versions. They differ mainly in engine and takeoff weight, hardly at all in appearance.

Variant	Introduced	Engine	Special feature
DHC-8-101	1984	PW120 or PW120A	Original version
DHC-8-102	1986	PW120A or PW121	higher takeoff weight
DHC-8-103	1987	PW121	more powerful engine
DHC-8-102A	1990	PW120A	reworked cabin
DHC-8-106	1992	PW121	highest takeoff weight of the series
DHC-8-100PF	Conversion	–	Freighter conversion by Voyageur Aviation

On top of that come military and government offshoots. The Canadian Armed Forces used Series 100 as a transport (CC-142) and as a navigation trainer (CT-142). Transport Canada used two aircraft as DHC-8M-100 for maritime surveillance. And the US Air Force flies a special version, the E-9A Widget, from Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida: two aircraft with additional radar make sure that no boats or aircraft stray into firing ranges over the Gulf of Mexico.

The four features that are enough to identify it

Many beginners like to mix up turboprops. With four observations you reliably get to the answer for the Dash 8-100.

The combination of T-tail and gear in the nacelles narrows down the family, and propellers and length the series. You take the last step via the registration, because the Dash 8-200 looks practically the same. You will find a general guide to systematic identification in the guide Identifying aircraft types for beginners.

The Dash 8 family compared

All four series share the high-wing design, T-tail and gear in the nacelles. The differences are in length, engine and propellers.

Series	ICAO code	Length	Propellers	Seats (typical)
Dash 8-100	DH8A	22.25 m	4 blades	37–39
Dash 8-200	DH8B	approx. 22.3 m	4 blades	37–39
Dash 8-300	DH8C	approx. 25.7 m	4 blades	about 50
Dash 8-400	DH8D	32.8 m	6 blades	about 70–90

The -200 is basically a -100 with more powerful PW123 engines. It flies a bit faster but looks the same. So anyone photographing a short Dash 8 has to leave open which of the two it is until the registration lookup. The -300, by contrast, is a good three meters longer and clearly recognizable in a direct comparison, and the -400 is a completely different size class again.

Dash 8-100, ATR 42 or Saab 340?

In its size class, the Dash 8-100 has several competitors that you may meet as well. The finder helps with a first assessment.

The ATR 42-300 is the most direct rival from the same era: similar in size, also a high-wing aircraft, but with gear fairings on the fuselage instead of gear in the engine nacelles. The Saab 340 is a low-wing aircraft and easy to separate for that reason alone. The Fokker 50, in turn, is a high-wing aircraft without a T-tail and with a longer fuselage. The article Telling turboprops apart compares all the turboprops at a glance.

Where to find the Dash 8-100

Once in Germany and Austria too

In German-speaking countries, the Dash 8-100 was a familiar sight in the eighties and nineties. Contact Air chose the type in 1986 and flew it in regional service until the mid-nineties. In Austria, Tyrolean Airways was among the early European customers and operated over a dozen Dash 8-100s until the last ones left in the early 2000s. Both fleets are long history; in scheduled service over Germany, Austria and Switzerland you practically no longer meet Series 100 today.

Today: Norway and Canada

As of October 2026, there are two regions where you can still reliably find the Dash 8-100:

• Widerøe in Norway is the most important operator in Europe. According to fleet figures from August 2025, the airline flew 22 Dash 8-100s, plus the Series 200, 300 and 400. The small Dash 8s mainly serve the dense network of short runways along the coast and in northern Norway. Widerøe has announced that it will replace most of its Dash 8 fleet by about 2030; keep an eye on how fast that actually happens.
• Canada is the type’s home. PAL Airlines from Newfoundland and its sister company PAL Aerospace together operated seven Series 100 aircraft according to fleet figures from the end of 2025, and Air Inuit uses Dash 8-100s as combi aircraft for passengers and freight in northern Québec.

According to aircraft overviews, 143 Dash 8-100s were still in service with 35 airlines in summer 2018. Since then the number has fallen further, but the type is far from gone.

Region	Hit chance	Why
Northern Norway and coastal airports	high	Widerøe uses Series 100 on its short-runway network
Oslo Airport, Bergen	medium	Widerøe connections, depending on rotation also with small Dash 8s
Eastern Canada, northern Québec	medium to high	PAL Airlines and Air Inuit
Germany, Austria, Switzerland	very low	at most ferry flights or special flights

Planning a spotting trip to Norway

If you are specifically looking for the Dash 8-100, the best plan is a tour to Norway. A good starting point is Bodø, home of Widerøe: right at the airport is the Norwegian Aviation Museum, which you can combine with spotting the current traffic. You will find more about the museum on the Norsk Luftfartsmuseum Bodø page. The article Regional airlines in Europe gives an overview of the continent’s regional airlines.

At small airfields traffic is thin, but the aircraft often come close. What matters is that you do not miss the few movements per day. So set up notifications on tracking; how that works in different services is shown in the guide Setting up alerts for aircraft, types and airlines.

Photo tips specifically for the Dash 8-100

The short Dash 8 is a subject with character. Its proportions, the high tail and the long gear legs make it unmistakable if you frame it right.

Common mix-ups and how to rule them out

Because the Dash 8-100 can hardly be seen in Central Europe anymore, it is one of the worthwhile targets of a spotting trip for many. You will find more ideas for such types in the article Spotting rare aircraft. And if you are just starting out, Plane spotting for beginners helps you get going.

Conclusion

The Dash 8-100 is the original from which the entire Dash 8 family emerged: short fuselage, high T-tail, gear in the nacelles and four propeller blades. No new aircraft has rolled off the line since 2005, and in German-speaking countries Contact Air and Tyrolean are long history. In Norway and Canada, though, the original version keeps flying, often on routes for which there is hardly a suitable replacement.