Extra summer flights to give economy a lift
THE Inverness air link with Amsterdam is to get bigger aircraft this summer due to its surging popularity.
The move has been welcomed by local business leaders as a major boost for the city who say it is a clear indication of the growing attraction of the area for businesses and tourists.
The frequency of KLM flights to and from Holland will increase during the peak months of July and August to two daily flights – and now it has been confirmed that the entire summer schedule will be serviced by a Boeing 737 which has 54 more seats than the 88-seater Embraer 175 currently used. This represents a 61 per cent increase in capacity on these flights.
A spokesman for KLM said: "I can confirm that due to positive performance, it is our intention to service the route between Inverness and Amsterdam with a B737 aircraft for the summer 2018 schedule.
"Frequency will increase during peak months to two daily flights, with the second flight being serviced with an Embraer aircraft."
The bigger aircraft move is seen as a sign of the confidence KLM has in the Highland market.
Last summer Inverness Airport welcomed 270,000 passengers at the peak of the tourist season between July and September, the first time numbers exceeded a quarter of a million and up almost nine per cent on 2016.
Stewart Nicol, chief executive of Inverness Chamber of Commerce, said: "This is excellent news for Inverness and the Highlands and is a very strong endorsement of this route from KLM, a leading global carrier.
"It emphasises just how strongly this route is performing and is great news for the Highland business community, whether they are welcoming inbound tourists to the region or using the direct flights to Amsterdam to do business in Europe or around the globe using KLM’s international network."
Inverness Airport general manager Graeme Bell said: "This service brings visitors to the Highlands from across the globe and is starting to be regularly used by inbound tour operators who want their Scotland holiday programmes to begin in the Highlands.
"In addition, there are increasing numbers of Highland-based travellers flying through Amsterdam, one of the world’s great aviation hubs, to connect worldwide for business and leisure journeys."
Willie Cameron, who is heavily involved in the hospitality industry around the city with Loch Ness Marketing and the Cobbs chain of hotels, coffee shops and a bakery, agreed it was good news.
He said: "This is absolutely brilliant. The more connectivity we have to get people coming into the area the better.
"There is so much interest in Scotland at the moment for 101 different reasons so the easier it is for people to come to the Highlands the better.
"It will be a lift to the economy and all the tourist attractions."
He added: "If we could only get more direct flights to and from countries such as Germany, Spain and France – because they are prime areas. Every little helps though.
"I noticed there are going to be direct flights from Inverness to Bergen in Norway, but another big market would be Sweden and Denmark where the golfers love to come to our courses, but have to jet into Aberdeen at present."
Last week Inverness-based economic consultant Tony MacKay said the Highland capital was well-placed to outperform many other parts of the country economically over the next 12 months, thanks to the optimistic tourist market and the fall in the value of the pound after the Brexit vote.
This week he said the boost to flights was yet another positive sign, adding: "Amsterdam is an attractive alternative hub to the London airports for people flying elsewhere, so I can understand why KLM are optimistic about the demand. The bigger planes will also encourage more people from the Netherlands to visit the Highlands. Air traffic in Inverness is currently booming."
