Trio of inter-island transport tenders hit milestone moments

An Orkney Islands Council tender for the purchase of a pre-owned third aircraft for Orkney’s inter-isles air service has gone live.

The Council has now also finalised the contract for the purchase of the MV Toplander – a landing craft style vessel – and taken delivery of a runway roller for isles airfields.

The three projects form a £2million package of strategic capital investments that will enhance the resilience and sustainability of the county’s vital inter-island transport links.

The projects are backed by one-off ScotWind funding from the Scottish Government and are aimed at ensuring continuity for island residents and businesses, reducing service vulnerability, and mitigating operational risks.

The new aircraft will provide resilience for the islands as well as additional capacity by reducing the number of shared flights, while the landing craft will provide essential cover during ferry outages and peak periods. The roller/compactor will enable in-house teams to maintain airfields, ensuring compliance with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The developments come shortly after the Council also published a tender for Expressions of Interest for the design of three new ferries for Orkney’s North Isles, through the Ferry Replacement Programme.

Consultation is underway with North Isles communities on the inter-island air services timetable based on a three aircraft operation – with the intention being to have a new timetable in place by Summer next year.

The proposals for the projects came in front of elected members earlier this year, with Council Leader Heather Woodbridge describing the backing of the proposals by the Council as an ‘historic moment’ for Orkney Islands Council in its ongoing work to meet isles connectivity challenges

She said: “Through some hard work from our officer teams across various services we are making significant progress in improving our lifeline transport links – not least the purchase of an aircraft, which I believe is unprecedented in the 50-year history of our Council.

“Some of these things may seem like small procedural steps but each of those is a huge leap in bringing us closer to ensuring that that our island communities remain connected, supported, and sustainable.

“The support from the Scottish Government - secured through positive relationships and effective collaboration - is hugely valuable and I thank them for their support.”