Operational Use
The Vihuri aircraft became the most-used aircraft in FAF service by the mid-1950s. The aircraft was subject to many accidents, and the press raised a lot of concerns about these. The safety of the Vihuri even became a matter for the government. In May 1959, the aircraft was permanently grounded after the death of the Finnish prime minister's son in the aircraft type. Attempts were made to sell the aircraft to Tunisia, without success.
After the inspection, it became apparent that the type and its design was sound; most of the accidents were due to pilots' often grave flight-regulations violations, and the fact all airframes were well worn by the end of the 1950s. The other problem were the engines. The engines used, Tampella Mercury, were recycled engines of wartime Bristol Blenheim bombers, which were already thoroughly worn out. The planes were sold for scrap to Moser OY. One airframe, VH-18, survives in the Central Finland Aviation Museum, and the fore fuselage of another, VH-25, is being restored. The canopies of the scrapped aircraft remain today as the roof windows of the Kuusakoski metal-recycling plant in Espoo.
Read more about this topic: Valmet Vihuri