Nordic Regional Airlines

You are standing at the fence, an aircraft in Finnair blue taxis past – and the tracker doesn’t say FIN but FCM. That is no mistake; that is Norra. The Finnish regional airline flies a large part of the Finnair network without you reading its name on the fuselage. This page shows you who is behind Norra, which aircraft it flies and how to reliably assign its ATRs and Embraers.

Norra at a glance

Nordic Regional Airlines Oy, Norra for short, is a Finnish regional airline based in Vantaa, right at Helsinki Airport. The operations center is there too, while the finance department is traditionally in Seinäjoki in Western Finland – a leftover from its founding days.

The special thing: Norra sells no tickets of its own. Since 2015, the airline has flown exclusively on behalf of Finnair. Finnair plans the network, sells the seats and provides the aircraft, while Norra supplies crews, technical services and flight operations. In the industry, such a model is also called a capacity purchase agreement – closely related to the classic wet lease, just set up on a permanent basis.

For passengers, this is barely visible: the aircraft wear Finnair livery, the flights have AY flight numbers, and the onboard service and frequent flyer program are those of Finnair, a member of the oneworld alliance. For you as a spotter, however, Norra is its own airline with its own code, its own fleet and its own history.

Codes and callsigns

• IATA code N7: belongs to Norra but hardly shows up in everyday use, because the flights are sold as Finnair flights.
• ICAO code FCM: appears in the air traffic control flight plan and on flight trackers – this is your most important identifier.
• Callsign FINNCOMM: this is how the crew checks in on the radio. The name recalls the predecessor Finncomm Airlines.

The interplay is typical of regional partners of large network airlines: the flight number belongs to the brand, the ICAO code to the operator. Once you have understood the principle, you will recognize it at many airlines – similar to codeshare flights, except that here a different company actually flies.

History: from Finncomm via Flybe Nordic to Norra

Norra’s roots lie in South Ostrobothnia. In 1993, a small charter company was founded there, which later became Finnish Commuter Airlines – known as Finncomm Airlines. Scheduled service began in the late 1990s, and cooperation with Finnair grew closer step by step; in 2010, Finnair took a minority stake. Over the years, Finncomm flew Embraer ERJ 145s, ATR 42s and ATR 72s, among others, as well as leased Embraer E170s. The company headquarters stayed in Seinäjoki, while flight operations ran through Helsinki-Vantaa.

In 2011, British Flybe and Finnair took over the airline jointly: Flybe held 60 percent, Finnair 40 percent. Under the name Flybe Nordic, or Flybe Finland, it was meant to build a regional network of its own in Scandinavia. In 2012, the airline also took over Finnair’s twelve Embraer 190s. Economically, the calculation did not work out. At the end of 2014, Flybe agreed to hand over its stake for a symbolic euro.

The fresh start followed in 2015: from May 1, 2015, the airline flew only under Finnair flight numbers, and it has been called Nordic Regional Airlines ever since. The former Flybe stake changed hands several times in the following years; among others, stakes were held by Finnish investors and temporarily by Finnair. In 2018, Denmark’s Danish Air Transport finally became the majority owner, today with 60 percent alongside Finnair’s 40 percent. This ownership structure still applies today.

Especially in phases of weak demand, Norra plays to its strength: smaller aircraft can be used more economically on thin routes than an Airbus of the A320 family.

The fleet: ATR 72 and Embraer 190

Norra relies on two aircraft families. The aircraft belong to Finnair or its leasing company and are rented out to Norra. According to Finnair, the Norra fleet most recently consisted of twelve ATR 72-500s and twelve Embraer 190s; two more used ATRs and two more Embraer 190s have been announced.

Type	Number (as of 2026)	Seats	Use	Spotter note
ATR 72-500	12	68–70	Domestic Finland, short routes in the Baltic Sea region	Turboprop with six-blade propellers, registrations mostly OH-AT…
ATR 72-600	two used announced for 2026	–	like the 72-500	Newer generation, hardly distinguishable from the 72-500 on the outside
Embraer 190	12 (two more used announced)	100	European routes from Helsinki	Regional jet, registrations mostly OH-LK…
Embraer E195-E2	18 ordered by Finnair	134	from 2027 as E190 successor	Larger engines, longer fuselage

The ATR 72-500 is the domestic workhorse. It serves cities such as Oulu, Vaasa, Kuopio, Joensuu or Kajaani and short routes across the Baltic Sea. The manufacturer is ATR from Toulouse. You recognize the newer ATR 72-600 from the outside only by details – most reliably through the registration and the tracker.

The Embraer 190 flies the longer routes, including to Scandinavia, the Baltics and Central Europe. How to tell it apart from the E170, E175, E195 and the E2 generation is shown in the guide Telling the Embraer E-Jets apart.

Generation change: E195-E2 and ATR 72-600

2026 is a year of upheaval for Norra. In March 2026, Finnair ordered 18 Embraer E195-E2s, plus options and purchase rights for further aircraft. Norra will operate them, deliveries are planned from the second half of 2027, and the E2 offers 134 seats. The E2 will gradually replace the Embraer 190. The manufacturer is Embraer of Brazil.

At the same time, used aircraft are joining: two more ATRs and two more Embraer 190s have been announced, including, according to reports, ATRs of the newer 72-600 version. It is therefore worth keeping an eye out for new OH registrations in Helsinki.

For spotters, this means: the next few years are exciting. The Embraer 190, which many have followed for over a decade in Helsinki and Central Europe, will gradually become rarer. If you want to photograph the old fleet completely, don’t wait too long. How to tell the different generations apart is shown in the guide Recognizing regional jets.

How to recognize Norra

Norra aircraft wear the regular Finnair livery: white fuselage, blue Finnair title and the blue logo on the tail. You will usually look in vain for a Norra title. The assignment therefore works through the aircraft type, the registration and the ICAO code.

The most important rule of thumb is simple: in Europe, Finnair itself flies Airbus aircraft of the A320 family, and on long-haul the A350 and A330. Anything in Finnair colors that has a propeller or is an Embraer is flown by Norra. For turboprops, the guide Telling the ATR 42/72 and Dash 8 apart helps if you are unsure about the type.

Spotting Norra: Helsinki and Europe

The best place for Norra is naturally Helsinki-Vantaa – everything important about the airport is in the profile of Helsinki Airport. All Norra aircraft take off and land here, in the morning the ATRs leave the base for domestic destinations, and over the day the Embraers shuttle to Scandinavia, the Baltics and Central Europe. A worthwhile side trip is the aviation museum right at the airport, which we describe under Suomen Ilmailumuseo at Helsinki Airport.

You can also catch the ATRs at Finnish regional airports. Many of them are small, with few movements per day – but you often get close to the aircraft. You will find tips for such airfields in the article Spotting at small regional airports. How often which domestic route is served varies considerably between the summer and winter schedule.

In winter, Finland gives you subjects that are rare in Central Europe: ATRs in blowing snow, de-icing vehicles at the Embraer, a low sun already at noon. How to equip yourself for it is explained in Plane spotting in winter; what happens during the de-icing of aircraft is shown in the matching background article.

In Germany, you see Norra mainly with the Embraer 190. Finnair uses the jets on individual routes to Central Europe, including to German airports. Which rotation is flown with an Embraer rather than an Airbus at any time changes with the schedule.

Norra compared with other regional partners

The Norra model is not an isolated case in Northern Europe. In Sweden, BRA Braathens Regional Airlines today flies ATR 72s on behalf of other airlines, in Norway Widerøe is the big regional airline with turboprops, and Finland also had its own regional airline in Blue1, which for a long time flew for a larger brand. The article Regional airlines in Europe gives an overview of the field.

The difference from many regional partners: Norra no longer has a brand presence of its own. Only type, registration and callsign tell you whether you are seeing a Norra or a Finnair flight.

Common mix-ups

• Assigning every flight in Finnair colors to Finnair – ATR 72s and Embraer 190s are flown by Norra with the ICAO code FCM.
• Taking FCM for a tracker error – the code belongs to Norra and is correct, even if the flight number starts with AY.
• Misclassifying a Flybe ATR with a Finnish registration – that is today’s Norra from the Flybe Nordic era.
• Separating the ATR 72-500 and 72-600 by looks – the differences on the outside are small; registration and tracker are more reliable.
• Confusing the E190 and E195-E2 – the E2 has much larger engines and a longer fuselage.
• Understanding Norra as a budget subsidiary – Norra sells no tickets but flies Finnair routes on commission.

Conclusion

Norra is the airline you see all the time without reading its name. Behind the Finnair livery stand a company of its own with roots in Western Finland, a changeful history via Finncomm and Flybe Nordic and a fleet of ATR 72s and Embraer 190s that is just about to face the generation change to the E195-E2. If you note down callsign, type and registration, you assign each of these sightings correctly.