New plane to serve Isles of Scilly and Alderney

The new plane will be operated by Skybus staff including, from left, engineering managers Kevin Rouncefield and Richard Cornish, Cpt Darcy Milkowski and first officer Preethi Ramachandran

An aircraft which will operate on flights serving Cornwall and the Channel Islands has arrived from Canada.

The Isles of Scilly Steamship Group said a DHC6-300 Twin Otter plane had been added to its fleet, the first time it had taken delivery of a new aircraft in more than 10 years, after it was flown more than 4,000 miles (6,437.3km) from the Rocky Mountains.

It said under an agreement with Aurigny, the plane would do flights to Alderney from Guernsey and Southampton along with taking passengers to the Isles of Scilly from Land's End, Newquay and Exeter.

The airline said the plane, which would have Aurigny's colours, was due to begin operating in November.

Jonathan Hinkles, managing director of Skybus, said the arrival of the new aircraft was an "exciting milestone".

"Adding a new aircraft not only reinforces our ability to deliver reliable regional air services, but also demonstrates our confidence in the long-term future of aviation within the group – which is excellent news for the communities we serve," he said.