British Airways resumes direct flights between Highlands and Heathrow
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The return of direct flights between the Highlands and Heathrow after a six week suspension have been welcomed as good news for the Highland economy.
Operator British Airways (BA) halted flights between Inverness and the UK's busiest airport on a temporary basis in mid-January, saying it was not sustainable to keep operating the service in a period of low demand.
The suspension coincided with a warning to MPs from Inglis Lyon, managing director of Highlands and Islands Ltd which manages Inverness Airport, that the service was "hanging by a thread" given the pressure the airline industry faced such as aircraft availability and the financial impact of the Covid-19 crisis.
Flights were intended to resume at the end of February and the first BA aircraft from Heathrow since the suspension was introduced touched down at Inverness this morning, with a return flight an hour later.
Stewart Nicol is chief executive of Inverness Chamber of Commerce which campaigned for the restoration of the Inverness-Heathrow flight after BA stopped the service in 1997.
He was "delighted" to hear that flights have resumed.
He said: "That's a really positive message for Inverness and the Highlands and it is great to see the service back as quickly and securely as BA indicated it would be. We look forward to seeing the route grow from strength to strength."
Although the Highlands has other air services to London, it was important for the region to maintain the direct link with Heathrow, Mr Nicol explained.
"Heathrow is one of the world's leading hub airports and that allows easy and seamless transition on to onward international destinations," he said.
"That is something that really matters for Highland businessmen and women as they increasingly trade on the global stage.
"Equally, it makes it so much easier for incoming businesspeople and tourists to get to Inverness and the Highlands. It's really hard to overstate how important this route is for the city and the region."
