Foula Airfield is an

airfield An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes in ...

located on the remote island of

Foula Foula (), located in the Shetland archipelago of Scotland, is one of the United Kingdom's most remote permanently inhabited islands. The liner RMS ''Oceanic'' was wrecked on the Shaalds of Foula in 1914. Foula was the location for the film '' Th ...

, part of the Shetland Islands in the north of

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

History

The airstrip opened in the 1970s and is run by the Foula Airstrip Trust, Scottish charity number SC021728. Foula is also served by a ferry service running three times a week but many tourists prefer the short flight to the 135 min crossing. Also, the ferry is based on Foula, so a day trip to the island is possible only by air. The flights are used to transport essentials, such as medical prescriptions, to the island, which has a population of 38. The airfield also provides the island's only public toilet and telephone.

Airline and destination

Foula is served by a PSO service from Tingwall Airport run by Airtask Group and funded by

Shetland Islands Council The Shetland Islands Council is the local authority for the Shetland Islands, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It was established in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local gov ...

. The service uses a Britten Norman Islander aircraft and runs 7 times a week in winter and 13 times a week in summer, with a flying time of 15 minutes. Flights are heavily weather dependent due to fog and crosswind.

Accidents and incidents

In June 2014 flights were suspended as it was believed that the airfield's insurance was not suitable following the closure of the island's fire station in 2012. Flights have since resumed.

References

{{Airports in Scotland Airports in Shetland Foula