Highlands airports hit by a storm of negatives
In its annual report, Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd (HIAL), which is owned by the Scottish Government, says it spent £1.9m tackling the winter conditions, while the ash cloud meant £600,000 of lost revenue due to disruptions to air travel.
During the year passenger numbers fell by 61,000 – a 5 per cent drop – to 1,062,748, with numbers at the biggest airport, Inverness, down by 8 per cent to 538,471. The problems followed HIAL losing more than £1m in government grant from a year ago which led to savings been made in operating costs.
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Hide AdBut the company says it continues to develop its business in the face of the difficult economic climate. Earlier this month Flybe launched a new Inverness-Amsterdam service, and charter flights between the highland capital and Zurich and Dusseldorf have increased capacity.
The company manages ten airports in the Highlands and Islands – at Barra, Benbecula, Campbeltown, Inverness, Islay, Kirkwall, Stornoway, Sumburgh, Tiree and Wick – as well as Dundee.
Meanwhile, Glasgow Airport yesterday announced an increase in passenger numbers for the eighth consecutive month, with almost 700,000 people passing through the airport in August.