Highland Airways
 |
|||||||
|
|||||||
| Founded | 1991 (as Air Alba) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ceased operations | 24 March 2010 | ||||||
| Operating bases | Inverness Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 11 | ||||||
| Destinations | 10 (all now suspended) | ||||||
| Headquarters | Inverness Airport, Scotland | ||||||
| Key people | Alan Mossman (CEO) Anne Maclennan (Charter Manager) |
||||||
Highland Airways was an airline based in Inverness, Scotland. It ceased trading on 24 March 2010 after failing to secure new investment. The airline operated passenger and freight charters as well as scheduled services from its main base at Inverness Airport. Other services included newspaper distribution to the northern and Western Isles and, until recently, charter services for corporate clients. Highland Airways was under talks for a buyout by Perth-based, Air Charter Scotland. Aircraft were also based at Cardiff Airport.
The company held a United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority Type A Operating Licence. It was permitted to carry passengers, cargo and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats.
The airline was established and started operations in 1991. It was founded as Air Alba, operating for four years as a flying school. It was renamed Highland Airways in February 1997. When the newspaper industry relocated their charter departure point for Scottish islands to Inverness in 1998, Highland won the contract to provide two BAe Jetstream 31 aircraft per day for this task. One of these aircraft also carried business and leisure passengers on its "Island hopper" service as well as freight.
Highland also expanded into contract work for the oil industry based in Aberdeen during 1998. Highland aircraft facilitated crew changes, business delegations, emergency freight or technician movements for the industry, meaning Highland Airways aircraft were regular visitors to the west coast of Ireland, the Faroe Islands and destinations in Norway including Stavanger and Bergen. The airline also began operating corporate charter services, most notably for BAE Systems, providing a daily service between Glasgow and the company's Filton Aerodrome, as well as flights for financial companies, electronics, utilities, whisky and the public sector. Highland have largely moved away from oil industry work, and after recent concerns about the financial stability of the company the BAE contract has been terminated, and is now operated by Eastern Airways.
...
Wikipedia