DAT Danish Air Transport

DAT is one of those airlines that many spotters only notice on second glance. An ATR on approach to Saarbrücken, an A320 with a Danish registration standing in Barcelona under a Finnair flight number, a turboprop landing in Copenhagen from Bornholm in the morning: behind all of it can be the same family airline from Jutland. Here you learn how DAT ticks, which fleet it flies and how to recognize its aircraft with confidence.

DAT at a glance

DAT is a Danish regional and ACMI airline based in Vamdrup, a small town with an airfield near Kolding in southern Jutland. For a long time it appeared under the full name Danish Air Transport; today it trades as DAT A/S and simply uses the three letters in its marketing. On Bornholm it is also known as “Bornholmerflyet” – DAT picks up this name on its own website.

The company is still majority owned by the Rungholm family; Jesper Rungholm is at the helm. Its own scheduled network spans Denmark, Norway, Germany, Italy and Austria. For comparison: that is a completely different scale from SAS, the dominant player in Copenhagen. DAT occupies the niches that are too small for large airlines.

Since 2003 the Lithuanian subsidiary DAT LT has been part of the group; it flies with its own operating license and is based near Kaunas. That is why Lithuanian registrations appear in the fleet alongside Danish ones.

From horse transports to scheduled flights: the history

DAT began in 1989 not as a passenger airline but as a cargo company. Known jobs in the early years included animal transports, among them horses, and supply flights for the Paris–Dakar rally.

Passenger charter was only added in 1994, and the first scheduled flights followed in November 1996. In the following years DAT built up an ATR fleet that still forms the backbone today. In 2009 DAT put an MD-87 into service, and in 2010 an MD-83 followed. From 2018 to 2021 three MD-82s also flew, and from 2014 used Airbus A320s joined for charter and wet lease. Between 2011 and 2014 a few Dash 8s were also part of the fleet.

A chapter many spotters remember: DAT was one of the last operators of the MD-83 in Europe. In September 2021 the last aircraft of this type was retired. If you still have photos of a DAT MD-80 in your archive, you own a piece of contemporary history. You can find more on the whole series on the page about the MD-80 family.

Year	Event
1989	Founded as a cargo airline
1994	First passenger charters
1996	Start of scheduled service in November
2003	The Lithuanian subsidiary, today DAT LT, joins the group
2009	A McDonnell Douglas MD-87 joins the fleet
2014	The first Airbus A320 joins the fleet
2018	Start of the island flights in Sicily under a public service obligation
2020	Takeover of the Saarbrücken–Berlin route
2021	Farewell to the last MD-83

Codes and callsigns

• IATA code DX: appears in the flight number, so on the departure board, ticket and booking page.
• ICAO code DTR: appears in the air traffic control flight plan and on flight trackers.
• Callsign DANISH: this is how the crew calls in on the radio.

Wet lease is where it gets tricky. When DAT flies on behalf of another airline, the booking system usually shows that airline’s flight number. On the tracker, depending on the contract, the customer’s code or DTR may then appear. So do not rely on the flight number alone, but check registration and type.

The fleet: ATRs for scheduled service, Airbus for wet lease

DAT publishes its own fleet overview with registrations. According to this list, the 2026 fleet looks like this (Aviation Week listed ten ATR 72s in October 2026, a deviation):

Type	Number	Seats	Typical role	Spotter tip
ATR 42	9	44–48	Scheduled, small islands, PSO routes	Several versions mixed, some very old airframes
ATR 72	8	66–72	Scheduled, Bornholm, Saarbrücken	From the ATR 72-200 to the 72-600
Airbus A320	5	180	Wet lease and charter	Classic ceo generation (A320-200)
Airbus A321	1	198	Wet lease and charter	The only A321 in the fleet
Citation jet	1	9	Business travel and special flights	Rarely seen

The turboprops come from the manufacturer ATR. At DAT you find different generations side by side, including the ATR 42-300, the ATR 42-500, the ATR 72-200 and the modern ATR 72-600. The older variants in particular are getting rarer at European airlines – a good reason to catch them while they still fly. The CEO has announced in interviews that some very old ATRs will be retired in the coming years.

For jets, DAT relies on the first generation of the A320 family from Airbus: the A320 and a single A321. DAT has no neo – if you are unsure about the engines, the guide A320neo or ceo? helps. How to tell the A320 and A321 apart is shown in the guide Telling the A318, A319, A320 and A321 apart.

Important for context: the numbers are a snapshot. Other overviews from 2026 list individual aircraft as in storage or permanently in service with customers. So not every aircraft on the list is out flying at the same time.

ATR 42 or ATR 72? How to tell them apart

Both types look very similar: high-wing, two turboprop engines, T-tail. At DAT they often fly to the same airports, so a close look is worthwhile.

Within the families, the variants differ mainly in propellers and cockpit. The newer versions have six-blade propellers, the older -300 and -200 four-blade ones. If you want to go deeper, the guide Telling the ATR 42/72 and Dash 8 apart has more features. And because propellers like to “freeze” when photographed, take a look at the article on the right shutter speed for propellers.

The route network: Bornholm, Norway, Saarbrücken, Italy

DAT’s own network is a patchwork of regional routes. DAT flies many of them under public tenders, so-called PSO routes: the state sets minimum standards for connections that do not pay for themselves and awards them to an airline.

• Denmark: The heart is Bornholm. From Rønne it goes mainly to Copenhagen, and Billund and Aalborg are also in the Danish network.
• Norway: DAT flies several regional routes, including from Oslo to Røros as well as to smaller airports such as Stord, Florø, Ørland and Evenes.
• Germany: Since January 2020 DAT has connected Saarbrücken with Berlin, and since May 2021 also with Hamburg.
• Austria: In 2026 there are also flights between Linz and Frankfurt in the network.
• Italy: Since 2018 DAT has flown island connections from Sicily to Pantelleria and Lampedusa under a public service contract (the contract was most recently extended until the end of March 2026), including from Catania and Palermo. Since November 2025, flights from Ancona to Rome and Milan have been added.

DAT took over the Saarbrücken route to Berlin from Luxair in 2020. Tenders of this kind are regularly re-awarded, so the network can change from one schedule to the next. Check the current status before every trip.

ACMI and wet lease: DAT under a foreign flag

The second pillar is almost more exciting for spotters than the airline’s own network. DAT provides other airlines with aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance – in the trade ACMI or wet lease. Anyone who wants to keep their own cabin crew can, according to DAT, also book a damp lease, where only the cockpit crew and technical support come from DAT. How these models work in general is explained in the article Wet lease explained.

According to DAT, partners include Norwegian, Finnair, Air France and British Airways. Two recent examples: since December 2024 DAT has flown for Finnair, and in summer 2025 daily between Barcelona and Helsinki with an A320. A DAT A320 was also stationed in Entebbe under a wet lease for Uganda Airlines. By its own account, DAT has also already been in service in Africa, the Caribbean, India and Bhutan.

On top of that come ad hoc charters for companies, organizations and private customers. DAT cites as examples a rescue flight with the A320 from Dubai and a trophy tour around a soccer World Cup. You can read more about the difference between charter and scheduled service in the article Charter flights and scheduled flights.

How to recognize DAT

Unlike with large airlines, DAT’s look is not a reliable identifier. The fleet consists largely of aircraft taken over used, and on wet-lease assignments the appearance can differ.

These features are more reliable:

• Registration: Many aircraft carry Danish registrations from the OY-RU… and OY-JR… series, some Lithuanian LY registrations from DAT LT. How registrations are structured in general is shown in the guide Understanding aircraft registrations.
• Type: ATR 42 and ATR 72 in scheduled service, Airbus A320 and A321 mainly on charter and wet lease.
• Tracker: ICAO code DTR, callsign DANISH.
• Place: Bornholm, Copenhagen, Billund, Aalborg and Saarbrücken are the most likely places to meet it.

For putting it in context in the hobby, the article How rare is my sighting? is also worthwhile. A DAT ATR in Copenhagen is everyday, while a DAT A320 in Southern Europe is definitely a catch.

Spotting DAT: where and when

Copenhagen

At Copenhagen Airport the Bornholm flights meet the dense traffic of SAS and others. Through the Bornholm route, the ATRs are regular visitors here. A proven spot is the Flyvergrillen, and you will find further tips in the guide Plane spotting at Copenhagen Kastrup.

Billund and Bornholm

Things are quieter in Billund and on Bornholm. Small airports often offer relaxed photo opportunities and short walks, but traffic is thin – plan your time around the schedule. General tips for such places are in the article Spotting at small regional airports.

Germany

In Germany, Saarbrücken is the most important DAT station. If you are in Berlin or Hamburg, you can catch the ATR on its way to the Saarland. At BER the observation deck at Berlin Airport helps you, and in Hamburg the Affenfelsen (Monkey Rock). More tips are in the guides Plane spotting at BER and Plane spotting in Hamburg.

DAT compared with other Danish airlines

Denmark has a long tradition of small, independent airlines. Besides DAT, Sun-Air of Scandinavia is another regional provider from Jutland. Historically, Cimber Air, Maersk Air and Sterling shaped the market – all three no longer exist today. DAT outlasted that phase and is thus among the more durable independent airlines in Scandinavia. A bigger overview is offered by the article Regional airlines in Europe, and in Norway you often meet Widerøe on similar routes.

Common mix-ups

• Confusing DAT with Danish Air – DAT is the short form of Danish Air Transport; both names mean the same airline.
• Equating the flight number with the operator – on wet lease, DAT flies under a foreign flight number.
• Mixing up the ATR 42 and ATR 72 – the fuselage length decides, not the livery.
• Logging older ATRs as -600s – four-blade propellers point to an early version.
• Listing a DAT A320 as a neo – DAT flies only the older ceo generation.
• Assigning an LY registration to a foreign Lithuanian airline – DAT LT also flies with Lithuanian registration.

Conclusion

DAT is not an airline for a quick tick in the logbook. Behind the three letters stands a family business that has grown from horse transports to a regional network in five countries and on the side leases aircraft with crew to airlines around the world. If you pay attention to registration, ATR variant and operating airline, at DAT you will find some of the most exciting regional aircraft still flying in Europe.