Skye airstrip study set to get Highland Council funds

The airstrip near Broadford was built and used by the military

Highland councillors will be asked to agree to a £5,000 contribution to a £15,000 study into the potential for a scheduled air service from Skye.

Loganair flew out of the island's Ashaig Airfield until 1988.

Highland Council, transport body Hitrans and Highlands and Islands Enterprise are jointly investigating resuming services to central Scotland.

The airstrip near Broadford was built in the 1970s and appears briefly in a scene from the 1980 film Flash Gordon.

The study will examine the possibility of extending the 771m (2,530ft) strip so it can better accommodate passenger aircraft.

In the early 1970s, it was built as part of the Operations for Military Assistance to the Community. The scheme saw engineer regiments construct airfields as part of the soldiers' training using materials supplied by local authorities.

The military used Ashaig as part of the Inner Sound of Raasay torpedo testing range.

Loganair's scheduled air service also operated from the strip to provide a link between Broadford and Glasgow.