Inverness suspended by BA *

The daily air service to Scotland’s Highland capital Inverness from Heathrow has been suspended by British Airways.

The airline says it is on a temporary basis and should return by the end of February.  In the meantime easyJet continues with its seven days a week route from Gatwick.  

There is known to be a general malaise on UK domestic routes currently, due to this time of the year not being popular for travelling, and the pandemic.

Inglis Lyon, Chief Executive of Inverness Airport's parent company Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd (HIAL), described retaining the link between Inverness and Heathrow as its biggest current challenge when he spoke at a meeting of Westminster’s Scottish Affairs Committee this week.

“That is an essential piece of business for the Highlands to retain, especially as we were successful in attracting it,” he said.

www.ba.com

www.easyjet.com

www.hial.co.uk

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OUR READERS' FINEST WORDS (All times and dates are GMT)

All comments are filtered to exclude any excesses but the Editor does not have to agree with what is being said. 100 words maximum

Peter SMART, Luthermuir

Losing an air route, even if temporarily, is always a blow, to local economies, to travellers' needs and preferences, to the airport staff whose jobs are at risk, and to the ego of the airport concerned. It's not just INV that is suffering currently. Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow are all suffering cancellations and reduced services on normally strong routes, including LHR and AMS. Unlike INV, which is owned by Scottish ministers and funded to tens of millions by the Scottish tax payer, none of the other three main airports receives Scottish government funding. As for a PSO, the rules are very strict and relate to the loss of service between two cities, rather than between specific airports. We all need to hope and pray that COVID restrictions remain eased and encourage passengers back on board. That's the only way to get routes back.

Jill Rush, Harrow

British Airways is doing a disservice by dropping the route at this time. Why can’t it be a PSO. I have to travel up on a frequent basis and the alternative of using either Gatwick or the train is not attractive.