Uncertain futures for three Highland airfields

Three remote Scottish airfields owned and operated by the Highland Council face uncertain futures.

They are:

• Ashaig Airfield on the Isle of Skye
• Dornoch on the east coast of the Highlands
• Plockton on the west coast, just north of Kyle of Lochalsh where the road bridge to Skye is located.

A return of commercial air traffic is a possibility for Ashaig on Skye. Loganair used to run services to Glasgow from 1972 to 1988 but it’s now used by light aircraft and emergency services.

Dornoch Airfield is a grass strip close to the small town of Dornoch, and a report to the Highland Council says there is interest from at least two parties, one community-based and one commercial operator, in taking on a lease at Dornoch airfield.

However, the report also states, “Should no such agreement be reached within the 2023/24 financial year, the Council should cease active operations at Dornoch Airfield and seek alternative uses for the site.”

Plockton Airfield is a favourite stop for pilots travelling along the west coast of Scotland with a spectacular location close to the the sea. That’s currently leased by a helicopter operator, PDG Helicopters.

The report says that Plockton Airfield was sold by the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) to the Highland Council in 1980 and that sale was subject to a restriction to the effect that lands could only be used as an airfield. The NTS has a right to buy back the airfield if the Council wishes to dispose of the asset.

Full details of the Highland Council report can be found here