Inverness Airport

This article is about the international airport in the Scottish Highlands. For the airport in Florida, United States, see Inverness Airport (Florida).

Inverness Airport Port-adhair Inbhir Nis
IATA: INV ICAO: EGPE
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner/Operator	HIAL
Serves	Inverness Highland Moray
Location	Dalcross, Scotland
Focus city for	Loganair
Elevation AMSL	31 ft / 9 m
Coordinates	57°32′33″N 004°02′51″W
Website	www.hial.co.uk/inverness-airport
Map
EGPE Location in Highland Council Area
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 05/23 1,887 6,191 Asphalt 12/30 700 2,297 Asphalt
Statistics (2022)
Passengers 700,012 Passenger change 21-22 96% Aircraft movements 10,349 Movements change 21-22  77%
Sources: UK AIP at NATS[1] Statistics from the UK Civil Aviation Authority[2]

Inverness Airport (Scottish Gaelic: Port-adhair Inbhir Nis) (IATA: INV, ICAO: EGPE) is an international airport situated at Dalcross, Scotland, 7 NM (13 km; 8.1 mi) north-east of Inverness. It is owned by Highlands and Islands Airports Limited (HIAL). The airport is the main gateway for travellers to Inverness and the North of Scotland with a range of scheduled services throughout the United Kingdom, and various scheduled services to Continental Europe. Charter and freight flights operate throughout the UK and Europe. Latest figures state 700,012 passengers passed through the airport in 2021/22.^[2] The airport is also headquarters to Dalcross Handling which now operates across Scotland.

History

Early years

The airfield was built by the Air Ministry in 1940 as Royal Air Force station Dalcross (RAF Dalcross), and was in use during the Second World War.

The following units were here at some point:^[3]

• No. 1 Flying Instructors School RAF detachment between January and February 1942^[4]
• No. 2 Air Gunners School RAF (July 1941 - November 1945)^[5]
• No. 2 Central Flying School RAF (1941)^[6]
• No. 2 Flying Instructors School RAF detachment between February and April 1942^[4] became No. 2 Flying Instructors School (Advanced) RAF detachment between April and November 1942^[4] became No. 19 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit RAF (October 1942 - February 1944)^[7]
• No. 7 Gliding School RAF (July 1944 - September 1955)^[8]
• No. 8 Flying Training School RAF (May - July 1951) became No. 8 Advanced Flying Training School RAF (July 1951 - December 1953)^[9]
• No. 13 (Fighter) Group RAF (December 1945 - May 1946)^[10]
• No. 13 Group Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Flight RAF (August - October 1941)^[11]
• No. 13 Group Communication Flight RAF (December 1945 - May 1946)^[12]
• No. 41 Squadron RAF between 1 and 15 April 1946 with the Spitfire F.21^[13]
• No. 63 Squadron RAF detachment during 1942 with the Mustang I^[14]
• No. 88 (Hong Kong) Squadron RAF detachment during 1943 with the Boston IIIA^[15]
• No. 122 (Bombay) Squadron RAF between January and April 1946 re-equipping with the Spitfire F.21^[16]
• No. 614 (County of Glamorgan) Squadron RAuxAF detachment during 1941 with the Lysander II^[17]
• No. 662 Gliding School RAF detachment (March - December 1968)^[18]
• No. 663 Gliding School RAF (May - November 1968)^[18]

The airport was opened for civil operations in 1947. British European Airways, one of the predecessors of British Airways, commenced flights to London-Heathrow in the mid-1970s using a combination of Hawker Siddeley Trident jets and Vickers Viscounts. In the late 1970s and early 1980s there were two daily flights between Inverness and Heathrow; however, the route was discontinued in 1983 on the grounds of poor financial performance. Dan-Air inherited the service and offered a three-times daily service. The airline sustained the route adding links to London-Gatwick and Manchester in the late 1980s; however, these new services proved not to be successful and were discontinued.^{[citation needed]}

When Dan Air was bought by British Airways in 1992, the flag carrier retained the service for a further five years, adding a fourth daily frequency shortly before withdrawing the link, amid considerable controversy and public anger,^{[citation needed]} in autumn 1997. British Airways transferred the London service to Gatwick, operated by its subsidiary on a three-times daily basis using lower capacity BAe 146 regional jets. The emergence of EasyJet as a force in UK aviation coincided with the launch of a daily service to London-Luton in 1996. Other destinations and airlines were added including; (Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Leeds/Bradford, Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle), particularly after 2003, where HIAL's marketing efforts were assisted by route development fund support from the Scottish Executive. The Heathrow link was reinstated at a daily frequency in 2004 by BMI; however, the service was discontinued in March 2008, the airline citing rising costs at Heathrow as the reason.

Since 1974, Inverness has been serviced weekly by non-commercial routes with Lorient (the 1st fishing port of France^[19]) in South Brittany. The companies Air Lorient,^[20] Diwan (Air Provence International) and Air Bretagne^[21] ensured the transport of sailors to the advanced bases in Scotland. Since 2005, Air ITM (Groupe Intermarché) has offered repatriation and replacement of sailors with a Hawker 400 jet aircraft.^[22]

Development since 2009

Inverness Airport (2018)

Check-in hall (2010)

Runway 05 (2009)

In 2004, Thomson Holidays launched a short series of peak season charter flights to Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza and Lanzarote using Spanair aircraft, flights to Palma were maintained (and Reus was added for a couple of seasons) through to 2010. Newmarket Holidays still operates various charters from Inverness on selected dates throughout the year. In June 2017 Thomson Holidays returned with peak seasonal flights to Palma once more, using a chartered Air Europa Boeing 737-800.^[23]

Ryanair cut its last routes to East Midlands and Liverpool in June 2009. Eastern Airways launched services to Manchester and Birmingham. However, when Flybe started flying the same routes in 2008, Eastern decided to withdraw.

International scheduled services proved difficult to successfully establish until the late 2000s, when a weekly seasonal service between Düsseldorf and Inverness commenced in summer 2009, operated by Lufthansa CityLine, and in 2011 when Flybe commenced daily operations to Amsterdam. The now-defunct Snowflake (a low-cost subsidiary of SAS) operated a twice-weekly service to Stockholm in the summer of 2004, however the service was withdrawn after a short period of operation, owing to lack of demand. KLM uk operated a daily service to Amsterdam via Edinburgh in 1997 but this was short-lived, lasting only a few months. ScotAirways launched a service to Amsterdam in 2001; however, this was withdrawn following the events of 11 September. A four-times-weekly service to Dublin was operated by Aer Arann between 2006 and 2008, before being withdrawn owing to escalating fuel prices.

The airport terminal is notable as an early example of the Public-private partnership favoured by the UK Government. HIAL was criticised for a PFI deal signed to build a new terminal at Inverness Airport. The deal signed by HIAL meant it had to pay £3.50 for every passenger flying from the airport to the PFI operator. In 2006, the PFI deal was cancelled, costing the Scottish Executive £27.5 million.^[24]

The airport is a hub on the Highlands and Islands network where flights between the islands, and other UK and European destinations connect. easyJet is currently the largest operator at Inverness, followed by Loganair.

The south apron, the main parking area for aircraft, was upgraded in May 2012 to improve access to the terminal by long-range aircraft.^[25] In November 2013 the airport's mile long runway was resurfaced and the taxiway extended, providing a link to the site of the Inverness Airport Business Park. However, the Business Park has struggled to become established.^[26]

On 3 May 2016, British Airways reinstated daily flights to Heathrow after an absence of 19 years.^[27] In the same month KLM Cityhopper launched daily flights to Amsterdam. Following the success of the route, it was increased to twice daily from March 2017.^[28] From March 2018, British Airways increased their flights to Heathrow from 7 to 10 weekly.^[29] Dalcross Handling, a local company, is the airline ground handler while Swissport operates the 'Aspire' business lounge in the Departure Lounge.^[30]

In anticipation of the greatly increased passenger capacity, HIAL announced a major expansion of the terminal building. This consisted of expansion of the departure lounge for additional seating and retail outlets, an extension containing a new international arrivals area, and an enlarged security search area.^[31]

On 13 November 2017, Loganair announced two new routes; a seasonal route to Norwich twice a week over the peak summer months, though this was scrapped^[32] three months before the planned launch. A new direct year-round service to Bergen was also announced. This service would operate 3 times weekly and would use the same BMI aircraft as the Manchester route, which allows same-plane service to Bergen for passengers from Manchester, along with the Inverness passengers.^[33]

In July 2018, HIAL announced that it was running an online poll to gauge public response to the idea of changing the airport's name to "Inverness Loch Ness Airport" to help boost tourism.^[34] However the public rejected the name change with 88% of those surveyed against it.^[35]

A planning permission application was lodged for a 130-room development to be built at the Inverness Airport Business Park, near to the airport, that could provide hotel facilities.^[36] Construction commenced in January 2019, with the Courtyard by Marriott hotel finally opening in March 2020.^[37]

In 2021, HIAL released a master plan for development of the airport up to the year 2045. Plans include extending runway 05/23 by 323 metres (1,060 ft) and construction of a new passenger terminal adjacent to the then proposed Inverness Airport railway station.^[38]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled flights to and from Inverness:^[39][40]

Airlines	Destinations
AlbaStar[41]	Seasonal charter: Palma de Mallorca
British Airways	London–Heathrow[42]
easyJet	Bristol, London–Gatwick,[43] London–Luton[44]
KLM	Amsterdam[45]
Loganair	Belfast–City,[46] Kirkwall, Manchester,[46] Stornoway,[47] Sumburgh
TUI Airways	Seasonal: Palma de Mallorca[48]

Accidents and incidents

• On 19 November 1984, an EuroAir Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante G-HGGS crashed into the side of a hill 6.5 mi (10.5 km) south of the airport. The pilot was killed in the crash and the aircraft damaged beyond repair. The plane was scheduled to deliver 2,346 lb (1,064 kg) of mail to Edinburgh and took off at 20:55. Eyewitness accounts say a "dying orange glow" was seen in the area approximately 4 minutes after take-off. The AAIB report concludes that there was insufficient evidence to determine a cause to a reasonable amount of certainty.^[49]
• On 19 January 2015, a Flybe Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 made an "uncontrollable slide" while the plane was exiting the runway. The AAIB investigation concluded that the incident was caused by a number of factors including the taxiway being wet with de-icing fluid, some patches of ice still existing on the tarmac and the plane having a "slightly higher than normal taxi speed". No one was injured and no damage was done to the aircraft.^[50]

Statistics

Inverness Airport had 700,012 passengers in 2022, which was an increase of 96% from 2021. Gatwick Airport was again the most popular destination with 216,298 passengers. This route accounts for more than thirty percent of all passenger traffic at Inverness Airport, with all London routes combined accounting for under sixty percent of passenger traffic. Shown below are the top ten destinations in 2022.

Busiest routes from INV (2022)

Rank	Destination	Passengers	Change 2021 / 22
1	London-Gatwick	216,298	95%
2	London-Heathrow	131,786	106%
3	London-Luton	116,251	76%
4	Bristol	68,920	46%
5	Amsterdam	48,786	354%
6	Manchester	35,445	215%
7	Belfast-City	19,604	98%
8	Birmingham	19,204	85%
9	Stornoway	13,234	5%
10	Sumburgh	12,819	4145%
Source: CAA Statistics[51]

Ground transport

Bus

Bus services operate between Inverness Airport, Inverness, Nairn and Elgin. Stagecoach in Inverness run between the airport and Inverness city centre close to the railway station.^[52] Jet bus offers a 24-hour service between Inverness Centre and the Airport, every 20 min at peak times and then at the hour off peak Monday – Saturday.

Rail

Inverness Airport Railway Station on the Aberdeen-Inverness line opened on 2 February 2023 and serves the airport with a half-hourly bus connecting the two.

A new station at the airport was first approved in February 2017.^[53] In May 2021 Highland Council granted planning permission to Network Rail for a new two-platform station at the airport, but expressed reservations as a level crossing would be replaced with a bridge inaccessible to disabled people. One councillor, who noted the new bridge clashed with Transport Scotland guidance, described it as "low-quality infrastructure" and said it was "deeply shocking that we are getting infrastructure like that still [being] built."^[54]

In January 2023, it was announced the airport's railway station would open on 2 February 2023.^[55]

Road

The airport is 7 NM (13 km; 8.1 mi) northeast^[1] of the city of Inverness just off the main A96 Aberdeen-Inverness trunk road.

Access from the A96 was previously by a single track road (suitable only for smaller vehicles) or alternatively by the B9093 Ardersier road. When the airport installed the new instrument landing system, the single track road had to be closed altogether. In April 2006 a new road, Inverness Airport Way, was opened providing full access to all vehicles from the airport direct to the A96. However most traffic still uses the old Ardersier road as it is far quicker. The new road skirts the western perimeter of the airport in a large loop and is provided with 'wig-wag' signals if road traffic needs to be stopped during aircraft landing/take off.

Taxis are available directly in front of the terminal building.

Highland Aviation Museum

This museum was situated in the Dalcross Industrial Estate immediately adjacent to the airport. It had 3 full aircraft (Hawker Hunter F.1 WT660, Blackburn Buccaneer S1 XK532 and Panavia Tornado GR1 ZA362) and several aircraft noses on display including Nimrod XV254. The museum was open to the public at weekends and bank holidays. Permanently closed from October 2019 with the aircraft sold on, XK532 remains on site with a more recent addition of Jet Provost T5A XW375.

Future

Highlands and Islands Airports have proposed the rebuilding of the terminal to accommodate a projected increase in passenger numbers to 1.8 million by 2045. The most expensive option, priced at between £34 and £55 million, would involve relocating the terminal buildings such that they are adjacent to the planned Dalcross railway station. An alternative proposal would see the existing terminal extended at a cost of £19 to £31 million.^[56] The Scottish Greens criticised the proposals, suggesting that the existing airport was adequate and that money should be invested in improving rail and bus links in the region instead.^[57]

References

Citations

1. "Inverness – EGPE". EAD-IT.com. Archived from the original on 27 February 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
2. "Aircraft and passenger traffic data from UK airports". UK Civil Aviation Authority. 21 March 2023. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
3. "Dalcross (Inverness)". Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
4. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 133.
5. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 48.
6. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 84.
7. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 34.
8. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 144.
9. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 137.
10. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 150.
11. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 155.
12. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 156.
13. Jefford 1988, p. 38.
14. Jefford 1988, p. 45.
15. Jefford 1988, p. 51.
16. Jefford 1988, p. 58.
17. Jefford 1988, p. 100.
18. Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007, p. 148.
19. "Lorient reste le premier port de pêche de France". Ouest-France.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 12 January 2017. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
20. "Air Lorient (1974-1986) page 09". Archives Nationales francaises. Archived from the original on 12 February 2017.
21. "Un parfum de success story flotte sur Air Bretagne". le Télégramme. 21 January 2000. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017.
22. "Transport des marins de Lorient à Inverness". Ouest France. 29 September 2014. Archived from the original on 4 December 2017.
23. "New holiday flights for Scots airports". BBC News. 21 April 2016. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
24. "Deal to buy out airport terminal". BBC News. 20 January 2006. Archived from the original on 14 August 2017. Retrieved 29 March 2007.
25. "Work to start on Inverness Airport upgrade". BBC News. 9 May 2012. Archived from the original on 20 March 2017. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
26. Munro, Alistair (5 November 2013). "Inverness Airport upgrade gets underway". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
27. "British Airways reinstates Inverness to Heathrow route". BBC News. 3 May 2016. Archived from the original on 20 March 2017. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
28. "NEW: KLM to increase flights from Inverness – KLM.com". Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
29. "BA to expand Inverness to London service". BBC News. 5 October 2017. Archived from the original on 12 November 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
30. Zurich, Silverfish AG. "Swissport International Ltd. – Network". Swissport.com. Archived from the original on 30 November 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
31. "Airport announces £900,000 expansion". BBC News. 4 March 2016. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
32. "Airline scraps second route from Norwich Airport in three months". Loganair. Archived from the original on 13 April 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
33. "New Routes 2018 – Loganair". Loganair. Archived from the original on 3 October 2018. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
34. "Poll on Inverness Loch Ness Airport idea". BBC News. 30 July 2018. Archived from the original on 30 July 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
35. https://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/News/Survey-gives-thumbs-down-to-airport-name-change-06082018.htm ^{[dead link‍]}
36. White, Gregor (25 July 2018). "Plans lodged for Inverness Airport hotel". The Inverness Courier. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
37. "First hotel for Inverness Airport". 29 January 2019. Archived from the original on 30 January 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
38. "Inverness Airport Draft Master Plan". Highlands and Islands Airports Limited. February 2021.
39. invernessairport.co.uk – Airlines timetable retrieved 10 September 2020
40. Destinations from Inverness Airport retrieved 8 April 2023
41. "AlbaStar flight destinations and schedules to & from Mallorca Airport (PMI)". Mallorca Airport.
42. "British Airways NW24 London Heathrow – Europe Frequency Changes – 26MAY24". Aeroroutes. Aeroroutes. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
43. {{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-34379950.amp
44. {{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-34379950.amp
45. "KLM NS24 European Service Changes – 21JAN24". Aeroroutes.
46. Liu, Jim. "Loganair NS24 Service Changes – 25FEB24". Aeroroutes.com. Retrieved 2 November 2024.
47. Liu, Jim. "Blue Islands / Loganair Resumes Additional Codeshare Routes From late-August 2023". Aeroroutes.com. Retrieved 2 November 2024.
48. "Flights with TUI | Thomson now TUI Airways".
49. "Aviation Safety Network G-HGGS". Aviation Safety Network. Archived from the original on 13 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
50. "Manchester flight made 'uncontrollable slide' at Inverness". Highlands and Islands: BBC News. 9 March 2015. Archived from the original on 13 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
51. "Annual airport data 2022". www.caa.co.uk. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
52. "Scothighlands – Bus from Inverness to Inverness Airport". scothighlands.com. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
53. White, Gregor (28 April 2017). "Rail concerns over timetable for planned airport station". Inverness Courier. Archived from the original on 9 June 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
54. Mensah, Kwame Amoah (4 May 2021). "Councillors approve train station for Inverness Airport". Rail Technology Magazine. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
55. MacAllister, Donna (19 January 2023). "Inverness Airport Railway Station opening date revealed". Press and Journal. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
56. "Inverness Airport wants the public to have a say on its expansion plans". Strathspey Herald. 12 February 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
57. "Fight on to stop Inverness Airport expansion". Northern Scot. 22 February 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.

Bibliography

• Jefford, C. G. (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
• Sturtivant, R.; Hamlin, J. (2007). Royal Air Force flying training and support units since 1912. UK: Air-Britain (Historians). ISBN 978-0851-3036-59.

External links

Media related to Inverness Airport at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website
• Current weather for EGPE at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for INV at Aviation Safety Network